Madagascar in the Indian Ocean
Wednesday, 2 September 2015 - 05:47 am (CET/MEZ) Berlin | Author/Destination: Africa / Afrika General , UNESCO World Heritage
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Ankify Lodge (Dauphin Bleu) © Rvdb2
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Madagascar is an island country in the Indian Ocean, off the southeastern coast of Africa. The nation comprises the island of Madagascar (the fourth-largest island in the world), as well as numerous smaller peripheral islands. Following the prehistoric breakup of the supercontinent
Gondwana , Madagascar split from India around 88 million years ago, allowing native plants and animals to evolve in relative isolation. Consequently, Madagascar is a
biodiversity hotspot ; over 90 percent of its wildlife is found nowhere else on Earth. In 2012, the population of Madagascar was estimated at just over 22 million.
Until the late 18th century, the island of Madagascar was ruled by a fragmented assortment of shifting socio-political alliances. Beginning in the early 19th century, most of the island was united and ruled as the Kingdom of Madagascar by a series of Merina nobles. The monarchy collapsed in 1897 when the island was absorbed into the French colonial empire , from which the island regained independence in 1960. The autonomous state of Madagascar has since undergone four major constitutional periods, termed Republics. Since 1992 the nation has officially been governed as a constitutional democracy from its capital at Antananarivo , where the Ivato International Airport is located.
Beach in Madagascar with pirogues and palm trees © flickr.com - Aleix Cabarrocas Garcia
As a result of the island’s long isolation from neighboring continents, Madagascar is home to an abundance of plants and animals found nowhere else on Earth. Approximately 90 percent of all plant and animal species found in Madagascar are
endemic , including the
lemurs , the carnivorous
fossa and many birds. This distinctive ecology has led some ecologists to refer to Madagascar as the “eighth continent”, and the island has been classified by
Conservation International as a biodiversity hotspot.
Madagascar’s sources of growth are tourism, agriculture and the extractive industries. Tourism focuses on the niche eco-tourism market, capitalizing on Madagascar’s unique biodiversity, unspoiled natural habitats, national parks and lemur species. An estimated 365,000 tourists visited Madagascar in 2008, but the sector has declined as a result of the political crisis with 180,000 tourists visiting in 2010.
Read more on
bbc.co.uk – Madagascar profile ,
Wikitravel Madagascar and
Wikipedia Madagascar . Learn more about the
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Smart Traveler App by U.S. Department of State -
Weather report by weather.com -
Johns Hopkins University & Medicine - Coronavirus Resource Center -
Global Passport Power Rank -
Democracy Index -
GDP according to IMF, UN, and World Bank -
Global Competitiveness Report -
Corruption Perceptions Index -
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World Justice Project - Rule of Law Index -
UN Human Development Index -
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