Living in Madagascar: some numbers

In the Indian Ocean, 9000km from Paris, 400km to the east coast of Africa, south of the Comoros and Mayotte to the west of Mauritius and Reunion.

Population:

About 21 million

Density:

36.2 hab / km ²

Area:

587 000 km² (4,800 km coastline)

Life expectancy:

According to sources, unreliable, barely 60 years

Capital:

Antananarivo (Tananarive). 1.6 million people, nearly 2 million for the general Tananarive

Official Languages:

Malagasy and French

Currency:

The MGA has officially replaced the Malagasy franc in January 2005

Government:

Democratic republic with a presidential character

Ethnic groups:

18 officially, besides some subgroups. Indo-Pakistani communities, Chinese, Comoros and Europeans, a community of French (about 25,000).

Religions:

Ancestor worship, Catholicism and Protestantism, without necessarily forego the traditional rites. Muslim communities also.

Human Development Index:

0.543 (146th world)

Patrimony of Humanidad for UNESCO:

Strict Nature Reserve Tsingy of Bemaraha (1990), the Royal Hill of Ambohimanga (2001), the forests of Antsinanana (2007).