Introduction

 

Background: Formerly an independent kingdom, Madagascar became a French colony in 1896, but regained its independence in 1960. During 1992-93, free presidential and National Assembly elections were held, ending 17 years of single-party rule. In 1997, in the second presidential race, Didier RATSIRAKA, the leader during the 1970s and 1980s, was returned to the presidency. The 2001 presidential election was contested between the followers of Didier RATSIRAKA and Marc RAVALOMANANA, nearly causing secession of half of the country. In April 2002, the High Constitutional Court announced RAVALOMANANA the winner.

 

Geography

 

Location: Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Mozambique

 

Geographic coordinates: 20 00 S, 47 00 E

 

Map references: Africa

 

Area: total: 587,040 sq km; land: 581,540 sq km; water: 5,500 sq km

 

Area - comparative: slightly less than twice the size of Arizona

 

Land boundaries: 0 km

 

Coastline: 4,828 km

 

Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm; contiguous zone: 24 nm; exclusive economic zone: 200 nm; continental shelf: 200 nm or 100 nm from the 2,500-m deep isobath

 

Climate: tropical along coast, temperate inland, arid in south

 

Terrain: narrow coastal plain, high plateau and mountains in center

 

Elevation extremes: lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m; highest point: Maromokotro 2,876 m

 

Natural resources: graphite, chromite, coal, bauxite, salt, quartz, tar sands, semiprecious stones, mica, fish, hydropower

 

Land use: arable land: 5.07%; permanent crops: 1.03%; other: 93.91% (2001)

 

Irrigated land: 10,900 sq km (2000 est.)

 

Natural hazards: periodic cyclones, drought, and locust infestation

 

Environment - current issues: soil erosion results from deforestation and overgrazing; desertification; surface water contaminated with raw sewage and other organic wastes; several species of flora and fauna unique to the island are endangered

 

Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

 

Geography - note: world's fourth-largest island; strategic location along Mozambique Channel

 

People

 

Population: 18,040,341 (July 2005 est.)

 

Age structure: 0-14 years: 44.8% (male 4,051,832/female 4,038,837); 15-64 years: 52.1% (male 4,657,346/female 4,745,971); 65 years and over: 3% (male 247,146/female 299,209) (2005 est.)

 

Median age: total: 17.46 years; male: 17.24 years; female: 17.67 years (2005 est.)

 

Population growth rate: 3.03% (2005 est.)

 

Birth rate: 41.66 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)

 

Death rate: 11.35 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)

 

Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)

 

Sex ratio: at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female; under 15 years: 1 male(s)/female; 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female; 65 years and over: 0.83 male(s)/female; total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

 

Infant mortality rate: total: 76.83 deaths/1,000 live births; male: 85.05 deaths/1,000 live births; female: 68.36 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

 

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 56.95 years; male: 54.57 years; female: 59.4 years (2005 est.)

 

Total fertility rate: 5.66 children born/woman (2005 est.)

 

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 1.7% (2003 est.)

 

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 140,000 (2003 est.)

 

HIV/AIDS - deaths: 7,500 (2003 est.)

 

Major infectious diseases: degree of risk: high; food or waterborne diseases: bacterial and protozoal diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever; vectorborne diseases: malaria and plague are high risks in some locations; water contact disease: schistosomiasis (2004)

 

Nationality: noun: Malagasy (singular and plural); adjective: Malagasy

 

Ethnic groups: Malayo-Indonesian (Merina and related Betsileo), Cotiers (mixed African, Malayo-Indonesian, and Arab ancestry - Betsimisaraka, Tsimihety, Antaisaka, Sakalava), French, Indian, Creole, Comoran

 

Religions: indigenous beliefs 52%, Christian 41%, Muslim 7%

 

Languages: French (official), Malagasy (official)

 

Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write; total population: 68.9%; male: 75.5%; female: 62.5% (2003 est.)

 

Government

 

Country name: conventional long form: Republic of Madagascar; conventional short form: Madagascar; local long form: Republique de Madagascar; local short form: Madagascar; former: Malagasy Republic

 

Government type: republic

 

Capital: Antananarivo

 

Administrative divisions: 6 provinces (faritany); Antananarivo, Antsiranana, Fianarantsoa, Mahajanga, Toamasina, Toliara

 

Independence: 26 June 1960 (from France)

 

National holiday: Independence Day, 26 June (1960)

 

Constitution: 19 August 1992 by national referendum

 

Legal system: based on French civil law system and traditional Malagasy law; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

 

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

 

Executive branch: chief of state: President Marc RAVALOMANANA (since 6 May 2002)

head of government: Prime Minister Jacques SYLLA (27 May 2002); cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister; elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 16 December 2001 (next to be held November 2006); prime minister appointed by the president; election results: percent of vote - Didier RATSIRAKA (AREMA) 37.7%, Marc RAVALOMANANA (TIM) 50.5%

 

Legislative branch: bicameral legislature consists of a National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (160 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and a Senate or Senat (100 seats; two-thirds of the seats filled by regional assemblies whose members will be elected by popular vote; the remaining one-third of the seats appointed by the president; all members will serve four-year terms); elections: National Assembly - last held 15 December 2002 (next to be held NA 2006); election results: National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - TIM 103, FP 22, AREMA 3, LEADER/Fanilo 2, RPSD 5, others 3, independents 22

 

Judicial branch: Supreme Court or Cour Supreme; High Constitutional Court or Haute Cour Constitutionnelle

 

Economy

 

Economy - overview: Having discarded past socialist economic policies, Madagascar has since the mid 1990s followed a World Bank and IMF led policy of privatization and liberalization. This strategy has placed the country on a slow and steady growth path from an extremely low level. 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. Exports of apparel have boomed in recent years primarily due to duty-free access to the United States. Deforestation and erosion, aggravated by the use of firewood as the primary source of fuel are serious concerns. President RAVALOMANANA has worked aggressively to revive the economy following the 2002 political crisis, which triggered a 12% drop in GDP that year. Poverty reduction and combating corruption will be the centerpieces of economic policy for the next few years.

 

GDP: purchasing power parity - $14.56 billion (2004 est.)

 

GDP - real growth rate: 5.5% (2004 est.)

 

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $800 (2004 est.)

 

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 29.3%; industry: 16.7%; services: 54% (2004 est.)

 

Labor force: 7.3 million (2000)

 

Population below poverty line: 50% (2004 est.)

 

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 3%

highest 10%: 29% (1999)

 

Distribution of family income - Gini index: 38.1 (1999)

 

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 7.5% (2004 est.)

 

Investment (gross fixed): 14.7% of GDP (2004 est.)

 

Budget: revenues: $783.7 million; expenditures: $1.079 billion, including capital expenditures of $331 million (2004 est.)

 

Agriculture - products: coffee, vanilla, sugarcane, cloves, cocoa, rice, cassava (tapioca), beans, bananas, peanuts; livestock products

 

Industries: meat processing, soap, breweries, tanneries, sugar, textiles, glassware, cement, automobile assembly plant, paper, petroleum, tourism

 

Industrial production growth rate: 3% (2000 est.)

 

Electricity - production: 840.2 million kWh (2002)

 

Electricity - consumption: 781.4 million kWh (2002)

 

Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (2002)

 

Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (2002)

 

Oil - production: 0 bbl/day (2001 est.)

 

Oil - consumption: 13,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)

 

Oil - exports: NA

 

Oil - imports: NA

 

Oil - proved reserves: 0 bbl (1 January 2002)

 

Natural gas - proved reserves: 0 cu m (1 January 2002)

 

Current account balance: $-281.9 million (2004 est.)

 

Exports: $868.2 million f.o.b. (2004 est.)

 

Exports - commodities: coffee, vanilla, shellfish, sugar; cotton cloth, chromite, petroleum products

 

Exports - partners: US 35.7%, France 30.7%, Germany 7.1%, Mauritius 4.4% (2004)

 

Imports: $1.147 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

 

Imports - commodities: capital goods, petroleum, consumer goods, food

 

Imports - partners: France 17.6%, China 11.1%, Hong Kong 6.7%, Iran 6.2%, South Africa 5.8% (2004)

 

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $500.3 million (2004 est.)

 

Debt - external: $4.6 billion (2002)

 

Economic aid - recipient: $354 million (2001)

 

Currency (code): Madagascar ariary (MGA)

 

Exchange rates: Malagasy francs per US dollar - 1,868.9 (2004), 1,238.3 (2003), 1,366.4 (2002), 1,317.7 (2001), 1,353.5 (2000)

 

Fiscal year: calendar year

 

Communications

 

Telephones - main lines in use: 59,600 (2003)

 

Telephones - mobile cellular: 279,500 (2003)

 

Telephone system: general assessment: system is above average for the region; domestic: open-wire lines, coaxial cables, microwave radio relay, and tropospheric scatter links connect regions; international: country code - 261; submarine cable to Bahrain; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region)

 

Radio broadcast stations: AM 2 (plus a number of repeater stations), FM 9, shortwave 6 (2001)

 

Television broadcast stations: 1 (plus 36 repeaters) (2001)

 

Internet country code: .mg

 

Internet hosts: 773 (2003)

 

Internet users: 70,500 (2003)

 

Transportation

 

Railways: total: 732 km; narrow gauge: 732 km 1.000-m gauge (2004)

 

Highways: total: 49,827 km; paved: 5,780 km; unpaved: 44,047 km (1999 est.)

 

Waterways: 600 km (2004)

 

Ports and harbors: Antsiranana, Mahajanga, Toamasina, Toliara

 

Merchant marine: total: 9 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 14,865 GRT/17,936 DWT; by type: cargo 5, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 2; registered in other countries: 1 (2005)

 

Airports: 116 (2004 est.)

 

Airports - with paved runways: total: 29; over 3,047 m: 1; 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2; 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4; 914 to 1,523 m: 20; under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.)

 

Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 87; 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2; 914 to 1,523 m: 42; under 914 m: 43 (2004 est.)

 

Transnational Issues

 

Disputes - international: claims Bassas da India, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, and Juan de Nova Island (all administered by France)

 

Illicit drugs: illicit producer of cannabis (cultivated and wild varieties) used mostly for domestic consumption; transshipment point for heroin.