A Few Facts about Madagascar
The Full Name: Republic of Madgascar (in Malagasy it's: Repoblikan'i Madagasiraka)
The Total Area of Madagascar: 594,180 square kilometers or 231,730 square miles
The Total Population: 15.5 million
Capital City: Antananarivo (or Tana) with a population of 800,000 people
Official Language: Malagasy and French
Religion: Christianity and Islam
Government: Republic
President: Didier Ratsiraka
Time in Madagascar: The GMT +3 hours
Currency: Franc Malagasy
Geographic coordinates: 20 00 S, 47 00 E
Climate: tropical along coast, temperate inland, arid in south
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Maromokotro 2,876 m
Population: 15,982,563 (July 2001 est.)
Population growth rate: 3.02% (2001 est.)
Ethnic groups: Malayo-Indonesian (Merina and related Betsileo), Cotiers (mixed African, Malayo-Indonesian, and Arab ancestry - Betsimisaraka, Tsimihety, Antaisaka, Sakalava), French, Indian, Creole, Comoran
Airports: 130
