Madagascar has celebrated the 62nd anniversary of its independence. France took over the city of Antananarivo in 1895, and added Madagascar as a colony two years later. Madagascar became independent from France, which meant it became its own country, on June, 26 1960.
The Republic of Madagascar is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately 400 kilometres off the coast of East Africa across the Mozambique Channel. Madagascar is the world’s second-largest country that consists primarily of islands, after Indonesia. The nation consists of the island of Madagascar (the fourth-largest island in the world) and numerous smaller peripheral islands.
Following the prehistoric breakup of the supercontinent Gondwana, Madagascar split from the Indian subcontinent around 88 million years ago, allowing native plants and animals to evolve in relative isolation. Consequently, Madagascar is a biodiversity hotspot; over 90% of its wildlife is endemic.
