on growth rate: 3.8% (1993 est.)

Electricity-capacity: 220,000 kW (1995)

Electricity-production: 595 million kWh (1995)

Electricity-consumption per capita: 43 kWh (1995)

Agriculture-products: coffee, vanilla, sugarcane, cloves, cocoa, rice,
cassava (tapioca), beans, bananas, peanuts; livestock products

Exports:
total value: $493 million (f.o.b., 1996 est.)
commodities: coffee 45%, vanilla 20%, cloves, shellfish, sugar,
petroleum products (1995 est.)
partners: France 41%, US, Japan, Italy (1995)

Imports:
total value: $612 million (f.o.b., 1996 est.)
commodities: intermediate manufactures 30%, capital goods 28%,
petroleum 15%, consumer goods 14%, food 13% (1995 est.)
partners: France 40%, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, US (1995)

Debt-external: $4.4 billion (1996 est.)

Economic aid:
recipient: ODA, $454 million (1992-96)

Currency: 1 Malagasy franc (FMG) = 100 centimes

Exchange rates: Malagasy francs (FMG) per US$1-5,302.9 (December
1997), 5,090.9 (1997), 4,061.3 (1996), 4,265.6 (1995), 3,067.3 (1994),
1,913.8 (1993)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Communications

Telephones: 96,000 (1988 est.)

Telephone system: system is above average for Africa
domestic: open-wire lines, coaxial cables, microwave radio relay, and
tropospheric scatter links
international: submarine cable to Bahrain; satellite earth stations-1
Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean Region)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 17, FM 3, shortwave 0

Radios: 2.565 million (1992 est.)

Television broadcast stations: 1 (repeaters 36)

Televisions: 260,000 (1992 est.)

@Madagascar:Transportation

Railways:
total : 883 km
narrow gauge: 883 km 1.000-m gauge (1994)

Highways:
total: 49,837 km
paved: 5,781 km
unpaved: 44,056 km (1996 est.)

Waterways: of local importance only; isolated streams and small
portions of Canal des Pangalanes

Ports and harbors: Antsiranana, Antsohimbondrona, Mahajanga,
Toamasina, Toliara

Merchant marine:
total: 10 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 20,624 GRT/28,621 DWT
ships by type: cargo 4, chemical tanker 1, liquefied gas tanker 1, oil
tanker 2, roll-on/roll-off cargo 2 (1997 est.)

Airports: 136 (1997 est.)

Airports-with paved runways:
total: 30
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 3
914 to 1,523 m: 22
under 914 m: 2 (1997 est.)

Airports-with unpaved runways:
total: 106
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
914 to 1,523 m: 60
under 914 m: 42 (1997 est.)

@Mad