|
Madagascar
Madagascar is the world's
4th largest island and
lies in the warm Mozambique
Channel (Indian Ocean) about
300km off the east coast of
Africa.
GEOGRAPHY and
CLIMATE
The
island has a
total land mass of 581 540
sq. km and is renowned for
its amazing diversity in
Fauna and Flora,
geography,
cultures,
climate (ranging from
arid parts in the southwest
to cool grasslands in the
central regions and a
tropical coastline and
rainforests in the east and
north). Madagascar is
mountainous with a steep
escarpment rising to 1 200–1
800 meter from the east
coast. Large parts of the
interior is a plateau above
which several extinct
volcanoes rise to heights of
2 100 to 2 900 meter.
Annual rainfall varies from
400 mm in the southwestern
lowlands to an average of 2
000 mm on the east coast and
as much as 3 500 mm in
Tamatave (Toamasina).
FAUNA and
FLORA:
Madagascar has about 12
000 plant species and
some 200 000 species of
animals and insects,
which makes it one of the
most bio-diverse countries
on earth. Amazingly, in
spite of its close proximity
to mainland Africa, more
than 75% of the island's
indigenous plants and
animals are unique and are
found nowhere else in the
world. These
include 50 species of lemur,
270 species of reptiles, 115
bird species (out of a total
of 258 species of birds
found there), 300 frog
species, 6 species of baobab
trees, 165 species of palm
trees, 850 species of
orchids, many unique ferns
and much more.
The island is home to nearly
half the world's 150 known
species of chameleon. These
include the world's smallest
chameleon - the Brookesia
peyrierasi which grows
to a mere 30mm - as well as
the world's largest
chameleon - the
Parson's chameleon - which
often exceeds 60cm in
length.
Unfortunately, deforestation
has claimed about 80% of
Madagascar's natural
forests. This causes
millions of tons of valuable
topsoil to be washed to the
sea yearly. Since president
Marc
Ravalomanana took office in
2001, much has been done to
halt and even reverse this
process.
BRIEF
HISTORY:
Exactly when the first
people arrived in
Madagascar is unclear, but
archaeologists have found
human remains of African
decent that dates back
approximately 2000 years.
The next group of human
settlers on the island was
Indonesians who
arrived there at about 700
AD.
It seems that although some
degree of racial or tribal
mixing did occur, the
families and tribes of
Indonesian decent (known as
the Merina) settled mainly
on the central highland
while tribes of African
decent established
themselves around the coast.
Arabs, who were mostly
traders, established
lucrative slave trading
posts on the
northwest coast during the
seventh century A.D.
Over
the centuries to follow,
thousands of Malagasy
were sent to the Middle East
and elsewhere as slaves.
By the
16th century, the
tribes on the island had
been organized into four
kingdoms. In the West
was the kingdom of
Menabe
(later known as the kingdom
of Boina) with Mahajanga as
its capital. On the east
coast was the kingdom of the
Betsimisaraka and in the
southern highlands was the
empire of the Betsileo
(actually consisting of four
smaller kingdoms). The
powerful Merina kingdom in
the central highlands was
formed by several formal
rivalry groups and had its
capital at Antananarivo.
The
first known European to
discover Madagascar was
Diego Diaz, a Portuguese
navigator who anchored there
on 10 August 1500. Diaz was
looking for a port of call
along the "Spice Route" to
India and was able here to
replenish his stocks of food
and fresh water from the
island. Following this
discovery, several Europeans
undertook expeditions to the
island and during the cause
of the 17th century the
Portuguese, English, and
French successively and
unsuccessfully attempted to
colonize Madagascar.
In 1896 the island again
became a French colony
and remained so until 1958
when it became an autonomous
republic within the French
Community with its own
president (Philibert
Tsiranana). Two years later
– in 1960 - Madagascar
became an independent
socialist
republic. In May 1973 Major
General Gabriel Ramanantsoa
took power by ways of a
military coup and on 15 June
1975 Didier Ratsiraka was
named president. Following a
referendum in the same year,
the country’s name was
officially changed
from “Malagasy Republic” to
“Democratic Republic of
Madagascar” (Republique
de Madagascar).
During Ratsiraka's rule, the
government remained
committed to revolutionary
socialism with a highly
centralized state.
CURRENT
SITUATION:
In 2001 the
presidential election
between incumbent president
Didier Ratsiraka and Marc
Ravalomanana
(photo
below right),
a Christian businessman and
mayor
of Antananarivo, proved
inconclusive and a runoff
vote was scheduled.
In
February 2002
Ravalomanara
alleged that Ratsiraka had rigged the results
of the elections
and consequently declared
himself president. In
response, Ratsiraka
proclaimed martial law and
set up a rival capital in
Tamatave (Toamasina) on the
east coast.
For several months the
country wavered on the brink
of a full-scale civil war.
In April, after several
months of political
stale-mate, countrywide
demonstrations and isolated
cases of violence, a recount
was done and the
constitutional court
declared Ravalomanana
Madagascar’s new president.
According to the recount,
51,5% of the voters had
voted for him.
In December 2006, Ravalomanara was elected to
a 2nd term as president of
Madagascar.
Since
first taking office,
Ravalomanana has implemented
several reforms and changes
such as privatizing formally
state-owned companies,
upgrading the country's
lacking road infrastructure
and seeking international
aid and foreign investment
to rebuild what was lost
during decades of
mismanagement under the
socialist governments of the
past.
ANTANANARIVO -
CAPITAL CITY
Antananarivo
(aka "Tana"
or "Tananarive"),
is Madagascar's largest city
and capital and has a
population of about 4
million people.
The
city (pictured on right)
is located on the sloped of
a ridge that rises more than
1 400 meters above sea
level. It was officially
founded in 1625 as a walled
citadel and became the
capital of the Merina
kingdoms in 1797. During the
rule of King Radama I
(1810-1828) the city became
the capital of basically the
entire Madagascar as a
result of his conquests. The
French captured Antananarivo
in 1895 and it became part
of their Madagascar
Protectorate.
Today
Antananarivo
is the
island's main
administrative, judicial,
communications and economic
center and is connected by
railroad to Tamatave
(Toamasina), the country's
main port, and to Antisirabe.
It also hosts several
prominent educational and
research institutions,
several embassies and
consulates and the country's
main international airport.
GENERAL
FACTS:
Capital:
Antananarivo.
Time:
GMT + 3
hours.
International Dialing
Code:
+ 261
Power supply:
220
volts (European 2-prong plugs).
Land Area:
581 540 sq km.
Climate:
Tropical along coast,
temperate inland, arid in
southwest.
Official Language:
Malagasy (Malayo-Polynesian
origin) with French as
trade language.
Population:
18,595,469 (2006).
Population Growth:
2.7% per year.
People/Ethnic Groups:
Malayo-Indonesian (Merina
and related Betsileo),
Cotiers (mixed African,
Malayo-Indonesian, and Arab
ancestry - Betsimisaraka,
Tsimihety, Antaisaka,
Sakalava), French, Chinese,
Reunionese, Indian, Creole,
Comorian. About 98,6% of the
population can be classified
as "Malagassy" which is
divided into 18 main ethnic
groups.
Religion:
Indigenous beliefs 52%,
Christian 41%, Muslim 7%.
Legal System:
A combination of French
civil law system and
traditional Malagasy law.
Economy:
Agriculture, including
fishing and forestry, is a
mainstay of the economy,
accounting for more than
one-fourth of GDP and
employing 80% of the
population.
Major Trade Partners:
Export
-
France,
Germany, Italy. Import
- France, China, Hong Kong,
Belgium, USA.
Agricultural products:
Coffee, vanilla,
sugarcane, cloves, cocoa,
rice, cassava (tapioca),
beans, bananas, peanuts and
livestock products.
Natural Resources:
Graphite, chromate, coal,
bauxite, salt, quartz, tar
sands, semiprecious stones,
mica, fish, hydropower.
Currency:
Ariary (gradually replacing
the older Malagasy Franc).
To view the current exchange rate
between your home currency
and Malagasy Ariary (or
Malagasy Franc), use this Currency Converter by
OANDA.com, The Currency Site.
Administrative:
6 provinces: Antananarivo;
Toamasina; Mahajanga;
Antsiranana; Fianaranisoa;
and Toliara.
National Flag:
Two equal horizontal bands
of red (top) and green
(bottom) with a vertical
white band of the same width
on the pole side.
Airline Operators:
Air
Madagascar (national
airline) and Airlink (South
African Airways).
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Click on the banner below to
visit the
CIA
World Factbook on
Madagascar.
|
