Which Continent is Madagascar In?
The Republic of Madagascar is the 47th largest country in the world and is made up of one main island in addition to other smaller islands found in the Indian Ocean. Madagascar is located in Africa. Africa is the second largest continent, in terms of both the constituent population (16% of the world’s population amounting to about 1.2 billion people) and the mass of land (6% of Earth’s total surface area). The African continent is bordered to the west, southeast, north and northeast by Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea respectively.
Madagascar Demographics
This nation has a substantial proportion of young population of less than 15 years of age. More than 90% of this population is of the Malagasy ethnic group, which contains both East African and Southeast Asian genetic material. There are eighteen subgroups under the broad Malagasy ethnicity. Other people residing in this nation are of Comorian, Indian, Chinese and French descent. The Malagasy, French and English are the widely spoken languages.
Politics of Madagascar
Madagascar was colonized by the French. It became fully independent in June 1960, after which revisions were made to its constitution as the country transitioned through four republics. This brought a shift from neocolonialism to multi-party democracy marked by adoption of a new constitution in 2010. Today, the Republic of Madagascar is a multi-party democratic nation. It is a member of the African Union, a body that fosters cooperation of the African nations.
Economy
During the neo-colonialism era at the first republic, Madagascar’s economy was strongly tied to the French. With time however, the country gained independence in its economies of trade. It has sizeable deposits of natural resources like copper, nickel, coal and chromite. The economy of Madagascar is dependent on the mining industry. The textile industry and the food processing industry are also thriving industries in the nation. Exportation gives a major boost to the country’s revenue as supported by the world’s supply of sapphires, whereby half are provided by Madagascar.
