PART ONE : GENERAL CONTEXT OF THE COUNTRY 1. Geographic situation 1. Madagascar is the largest Island in the Indian Ocean with 587 00 km2 in land mass, 1580 km long and 580 km withd and more than 5,000 coastline. It is located 400 km from the coast of southern Africa from which it is seprated by the Mozambique Channel. 2. Climate and vegetation 2. The country has a large tropical climatic diversity varying between a hot and humid season and a less rainy winter season. Temperatures vary with altitude and season. 3. The former forest has disappeared, to make way for a grass savannah which favored runoff, causing dents and deep scratches on the slopes 4. The West has a dry tropical climate where temperatures remain warm even in winter. The rainfall is very low in the south. The average temperature is 20 ° with an amplitude of 5.5 ° to 10 °. 3. Administrative subdivision 5. Administratively, Madagascar is divided into provinces divided into 22 regions, 119 districts, 1,579 municipalities, and 17,485 areas (Fokontany). 1