Madagascar
Major activities: Snorkelling and diving at Ifaty; visiting the lemurs
and the Ankarana Reserve; sight-seeing in Antananarivo; and many more.
Madagascar Socio-Economic Statistics*
East of Africa, in the Indian Ocean lies this pieces of earth, split off
from the African mainland millions of years ago. As an island - uninhabited
until seafarers from Southeast Asia and Africa arrived 1500 to 2 000 years
ago - Madagascar's isolation has preserved unique species such as the
endangered lemur and ancient baobab trees.
| Capital |
Antananarivo |
| National Day |
26 October 1960 |
| Airport |
Ivato International Airport |
| Main languages |
French, Malagasy, English |
| Time zone |
GMT +3 |
| Size |
587 051 km2 |
| Population |
20 754 million (2009) |
| Economy |
Fishing and Forestry are pillars of an agriculture - based economy and it is the biggest vanilla producer in the world. |
| Currency |
Malagasy Ariary (MGA) |
| Climate |
Rainy season November to April with average summer temperature of 20°C, which drops to just below 15°C in winter. |
| Places to see
|
Antananarivo, Avenue du Baobab at Morondava, Reserve speciale de L'a narana, Snorkeling at Ifaty, Mangily and Madio Rano. |
Airlink operates daily direct and convenient flights to Antananarivo from Johannesburg.