According to CIA figures, in 2002 27.4% of GDP came from agriculture, 12.8% from industry, and 59.8% from services. Madagascar exports coffee, vanilla, sugar, cloves, Ylang-Ylang oil (from Cananga odorata); livestock products; textiles; seafood products (including shark-fins); exotic pets (reptiles and amphibians); minerals and gemstones.
In 2002 39% of exports went to France, nearly 20% to the U.S., and 5.5% to Germany. Lesser trade parters include Japan and Singapore.
In 2003 Malagasy exports were worth about $700 million and the country's trade deficit was around $220 million.
As of 2002 Madagascar's external debt was $4.6 billion, while its GDP ( as measured by purchasing power parity) was around 12.2 billion.
Tourism, garmet production, and mineral extraction are key industries for Madagascar's future economic growth.
Almost all pictures on this site were taken with a Konica Minolta
Recent articles
Madagascar fires mapped with Google Earth in real-time Every year as much as one-third of Madagascar, one of the planet's most biodiverse islands, goes up in flames. Now a new tool gives scientists the ability to monitor and track Madagascar's fires in real-time through the Internet.
UNESCO lists rainforest parks of Madagascar as Heritage sites (7/2/2007) UNESCO has listed six rainforest parks in Madagascar as World Heritage sites. The announcement comes as the Indian Ocean island nation has moved aggressively to protect its biologically-rich forests from further degradation.
Conservation is saving lemurs and helping people in Madagascar (5/7/2007) Madagascar, an island nation that lies off the coast of southeastern Africa, has long been famous for its unique and diverse species of wildlife, especially lemurs--primates found nowhere else on the planet. In recent years, the island country has also become world-renowned for conservation efforts that are succeeding in spite of extraordinary pressures from a poor population that relies heavily on forest burning for basic subsistence. A large part of this success is due to the early efforts of Patricia Wright, a primatologist who has been working in the country for more than 20 years. Wright led the effort to launch the country's leading protected area and helped Madagascar become a leading global example of conservation despite its economic adversity.
