Chic African Culture Africa Factbook

Did you know?

1. No African country names begin with the letters F, H, I, J, O, P, Q, V, W, X, or Y.

2. Africa is surrounded by water but by definition Africa is not an island because Africa is a continent.

3. The Republic of the Congo is one of the most urbanized countries in Africa.

How Rice is Made in Madagascar

Rice is a major source of calories for half of the world's population. In Madagascar, rice markets have always been important, since rice is the most important staple in the country. Many families eat rice three times a day, and most of it is homegrown.

Grounding rice in Madagascar
Grounding rice in Madagascar

In the 1970s, Madagascar was a rice exporter but has since become a rice importer making Madagascar’s economy very fragile; the country imports significant amounts of rice from international markets for everyday consumption, around 51%.  The average household income in Madagascar is less than $1.25 making Madagascar an extreme low-income African country according the World Bank Standards.

Rice production is a major source of income and employment for many households in Madagascar. But, as prices increase for rice as well as other major staples of cassava and maize, most small farmers benefit little or not at all from price increases.

The rice production technologies used in Madagascar are still largely traditional, however many rice farmers are using the System of Rice Intensification or SRI. Nevertheless, rice production is still largely highly labor intensive.

Working rice fields in Madagascar
Working rice fields in Madagascar

The French Jesuit priest Henri de Laulanié, developed the SRI method in the 1980s. Traditional Madagascar rice farmers flood their rice fields and plant bunches of mature rice plants, while SRI farmers transplant young seedlings with greater spacing on soil that is moist but not flooded. 

Better U Foundation, funded by actor Jim Carrey, has assisted in SRI’s rice growing implementation in Madagascar. SRI cultivators claim the system uses 25% -50% less water, requires 80% -90% fewer seeds, and can sometimes double or even triple the rice yields.

Rice cultivation is found almost everywhere in Madagascar however, the central and northern regions of the country is where nearly 80% of Madagascar’s rice is grown. Lowland rice production structures are well developed and rice terraces are regularly found along the roads between the capital and largest city in Madagascar Antananarivo and the third largest city in Madagascar Antsirabe. 
Mother and daughter pound rice in Madagascar
Mother and daughter pound rice in Madagascar

Cyclone Enawo, equivalent of a Category 4 hurricane hit in early March 2017 and crossed the length of the country, causing rice production in 2017 to be below average. Approximately 434,000 people were affected by Cyclone Enawo and were in need of food assistance. 

Cyclone Enawo was the strongest tropical cyclone to strike Madagascar since Gafilo in 2004. The damage is enormous wherever the cyclone hit and damage to Madagascar’s rice production was immediately felt since another natural disaster, severe drought 2015, affected the county with the southern region the worst affected.

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Chic African Culture and The African Gourmet=

Africa is surrounded by water but is not an island, here are a few African Island facts.

Madagascar is the 4th large island in the world and is located in the Indian Ocean supporting a unique biology, about 90% of its plants and animals are found nowhere else on earth.

Composed of 155 islands, Seychelles is Africa's smallest country. By far the largest island is Mahe, home to about 90% of the population and the site of its capital city of Victoria.

Cabo Verde has a strategic location 310 miles or 500 km from the west coast of Africa near major north-south sea routes; important communications station; important sea and air refueling site.

Africa is surrounded by water but by definition Africa is not an island because Africa is a continent. Continents can not be considered islands because of their size and also by historic definition since many people who study geography define islands and continents as two different things.

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Being African in America I have grown up learning about different ethnic cultures. My father and mother are historians of African culture and history and their influence expanded my activities to several best-selling cookbooks, magazine columns, self-branded products, and a popular African culture and food blog.

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Be better than average and support African history and culture. Since 2008 Chic African Culture and The African Gourmet highlight Africa through her food and culture. Contact us culture1africangourmet@gmail.com

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