Madagasikara and Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, is an island state of Africa consisting of a large island in the Indian Ocean that the Mozambique channel separates from the rest of the continent. It is the fifth largest island in the world after Australia, Greenland, New Guinea and Borneo. 1,580 km long and 580 km wide, Madagascar covers an area of 587,000 km2. Its capital is Antananarivo [3] and the country's currency is the Ariary. The country is surrounded by other islands and archipelagos including Mauritius, Seychelles, Mayotte, Comoros and Reunion.
During most of the nineteenth century, the island was administered by the Kingdom of Madagascar, this administration is exercised within the framework of the Frenchprotectorat of Madagascar after 1883, following the first expedition of Madagascar. The protectorate being little applied by the Malagasy government, France organized a second military expedition from 1895. The French settlements of Diego Suarez, Nosy-Be and Île Sainte-Marie were attached to the protectorate on January 28, 1896. The troubles following the French military intervention led, in 1897, to the end of the Malagasy autonomy, the annexation of the island by France and the reunion of the former protectorate and other French territories within of the colony of Madagascar and dependencies. The first Malagasy self-government returns to the day October 10, 1958 when the Republic of Madagascar is proclaimed on the territory of the former protectorate. In 1960, the Republic of Madagascar gained independence, making the country one of the first to become independent in this area of the Indian Ocean.
The country is today divided into 06 faritany ("provinces"), which revolve around cities that bear the same name as the province: (1) Antananarivo or Tananarive, (2) Antsiranana or Diego-Suarez, (3) ) Fianarantsoa, (4) Mahajanga or Majunga, (5) Toamasina or Tamatave and (6) Toliara or Tulear. For twenty centuries, Madagascar has been shaped by people from various horizons: Africa, South-East Asia (Indonesia), the Middle East, Europe ... to create the current Malagasy pluricultural society. This country of 23 million inhabitants is very culturally diverse and has 18 distinct ethnic groups (foko) or indigenous nations and speaking Austronesian languages. It belongs to the group of least developed countries according to the onu.