About Madagascar

Baobab trees, Adansonia grandidieri, in rice paddy fields enchroached by Water hyacinths. Morondava, Madagascar.

A Great Red Island with a Touch of Green

Just off the southeast coast of Africa lies Madagascar, the fifth largest island in the world. Neither African, nor Asian despite its oriental influences, Madagascar's cultural crossroads, unique primates and towering baobab trees lend the island a very distinctive identity.

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Madagascar [Wikipedia]

Geography & Climate

At 587,000 km², Madagascar is the fifth largest island in the world, comparable in size to Kenya.

The eastern part of the island is still covered by a narrow band of lowland forests that lead to steep hills and central highlands, with volcanic mountains rising to the north in the Tsaratanana Massif.

The northwest coast forms a series of natural coves, with broad plains inland, while the southwest region consists of plateaus and deserts. Because of the island’s localized red soils, Madagascar has been called the "Great Red Island".

Madagascar’s climate is tropical along the coast, temperate inland, and arid in the south. The island is hot and rainy from November to April, and cooler and dry from May to October. Southeastern trade winds sweep the island, along with occasional cyclones – which can occasionally be very destructive.

Ring-tailed lemur (<I>Lemur catta</I>).<BR>

Nature

The island of Madagascar separated from the African continent some 165 million years.¹ Since then, a unique array of plants and animals have evolved, including many endemics (species found nowhere else in the world). These characteristics have led some scientists to dub Madagascar the "seventh continent”.

You say lemurs? All 50 known species of these small primates are found only on this island. These include the indri, the largest living lemur; black lemurs, which feed on ripe fruit, leaves, insects and flowers; and the hairy-eared dwarf lemur that has long wavy hair around its ears.

The eastern, or windward side of the island is home to tropical rainforests, while the western and southern sides of the island are covered by tropical dry forests, thorn forests, and deserts and xeric shrublands. Dry forests support hundreds of endemic plant and animal species - for example, 7 species of baobab trees as compared to only one in all of Africa.

Population & Religion

Madagascar may be just a few hours away from Africa, but the roots of many of its peoples can be traced back all the way to Asia. A deserted island until Austronesian seafarers arrived between 2,000-1,500 years ago, the population has now grown to approximately 17.5 million people. A majority of the population depends on subsistence farming, mostly rice and cattle.

Madagascar's ties with Asia persist today, with the Malagasy language taking 90% of its basic vocabulary from the Maanyan language from southern Borneo. French is spoken among the educated population of this former French colony.

Some 45% of the Malagasy are Christian, although for many their beliefs include the cult of the dead. Islam in Madagascar constitutes about 7-10% of the population. Approximately half of the country's population practices traditional religions, which draw on the links between the living and the dead.

Economy and development

Tourism, textile and light manufacturing exports, agriculture (Madagascar is the world's leading producer of vanilla) and mining are the island nation’s main sources of income.

Despite this vast economic potential, Madagascar remains crippled by poverty, mortality rate for newborns is high ² and the adult illiteracy rate remains at 30%.³

Sources

Wikipedia. Madagascar. Accessed at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madagascar on April 14, 2007.

¹ Schatz, G.E. 1996. Malagasy/Indo-Australo-Malesian phytogeographic connections. In: W.R. Lourenço (ed.), Biogeography of Madagascar. Editions ORSTOM, Paris.

² World Development Indicators database, April 2006.

³ UNDP. Human Development Report 2006.

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