Natural Resources
Madagascar has a number of natural resources, including graphite, chromite, coal, bauxite, salt, quartz, tar sands, semi-precious stones and mica. There are also fishing areas offshore and potential for hydropower. In 2001, it was estimated that 5.07% of the land area was used for arable land, 1.03% had permanent crops. Twenty-six percent of the land is forested. The majority of the population depend on subsistence farming, largely rice and cattle. The manufacturing sector is small but growing.
Read more about this topic: Geography Of Madagascar
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