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Madagascar

✨ The island of a thousand wonders

Madagascar is an island country in the Indian Ocean, off the southeastern coast of Africa. It is the fourth-largest island in the world and covers about 587,000 square kilometres. Its capital and largest city is Antananarivo, located in the central highlands. The island has a varied landscape, including high plateaus, mountains, tropical forests, dry forests and coastal plains.

Its highest point is Maromokotro, which reaches 2,876 metres in the Tsaratanana massif. Madagascar has several climate zones, influenced by altitude, latitude and ocean currents. The eastern side is generally wetter, while parts of the west and south are considerably drier. Madagascar separated from the African mainland millions of years ago, helping its wildlife evolve in relative isolation.

This long isolation has given Madagascar exceptional biodiversity. A very large share of its native plants and animals are found nowhere else on Earth. Lemurs are among its best-known animals, and the island is also home to chameleons, fossas, many birds and distinctive plant species such as baobabs. However, many natural habitats have been reduced by deforestation, agriculture and other human activities, making conservation an important challenge.

Madagascar's population is culturally diverse, with Malagasy and French as official languages. The country's economy includes agriculture, fishing, tourism, mining and manufacturing. Rice is a major food crop, while products such as vanilla, cloves and coffee are important agricultural exports. Madagascar became independent from French colonial rule on 26 June 1960.

💡 Did you know?

Did you know that Madagascar is the land of vanilla? The small black pod that gives that delicious taste to your ice creams and cakes comes from an orchid that Malagasy farmers care for with great attention. Each flower must be fertilized by hand with a small wooden thorn, because the insect that does it naturally does not exist on the island!

In Madagascar, there is a stone forest called the 'Tsingy de Bemaraha.' These are thousands of gray limestone peaks, extremely sharp and tightly packed together. The word 'Tsingy' means 'where one cannot walk barefoot.' It is a true mineral labyrinth where only the very agile sifaka lemurs manage to jump from point to point without getting hurt.

The lemur is the king of the island! There are over 100 different species, from the smallest weighing less than an apple (the mouse lemur) to the singing lemur (the Indri) whose calls sound like sirens. The most famous is the Ring-tailed Lemur with its long black and white ringed tail, which spends a lot of time on the ground taking 'sun baths' with its arms wide open.