Itasy is a

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...

in central

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Afric ...

. It borders

Analamanga Analamanga is a region in central Madagascar, containing the capital Antananarivo and its surrounding metropolitan area. The region has an area of , and had a population of 3,618,128 in 2018. Administrative divisions Analamanga Region is divided in ...

region in northeast,

Vakinankaratra Vakinankaratra is a region in central Madagascar. The capital of the region is Antsirabe. Vakinankaratra covers an area of , and had a population of 2,074,358 in 2018. History The kingdom of Vakinankaratra, known as the kingdom of the river And ...

in south and

Bongolava Bongolava is a region in central-western Madagascar. The capital of the region is Tsiroanomandidy. It had a population of 674,474 in 2018. Geography The region is situated in central-western Madagascar. It is bordered by Betsiboka, Melaky, Menabe, ...

in northwest. The capital of the region is

Miarinarivo Miarinarivo is a city (commune urbaine) in Itasy Region, in the Central Highlands of Madagascar. Miarinarivo is located at of Antananarivo and is the capital of Itasy Region as well as of its district. Education In Miarinarivo are situ ...

, and the population was 897,962 in 2018. It is the smallest of all the 22 regions in area with , and is the most densely populated region after Analamanga.

Administrative divisions

Itasy Region is divided into three districts, which are sub-divided into 51 communes. *

Arivonimamo District Arivonimamo is a district of Itasy Itasy is a region in central Madagascar. It borders Analamanga region in northeast, Vakinankaratra in south and Bongolava in northwest. The capital of the region is Miarinarivo, and the population was 897,962 ...

- 22 communes *

Miarinarivo District Miarinarivo is a district of Itasy in Madagascar. It is located approximately 100 km east of Antananarivo Antananarivo ( French: ''Tananarive'', ), also known by its colonial shorthand form Tana, is the capital and largest city of Madaga ...

- 12 communes *

Soavinandriana District Soavinandriana is a district of Itasy in Madagascar. Communes The district is further divided into 15 communes: * Ambatoasana Centre * Amberomanga * Ambohidanerana * Amparaky * Ampary * Ampefy * Ankaranana * Ankisabe * Antanetibe * Do ...

- 15 communes

Infrastructure

Airport

* Arivonimamo Airbase

Roads

The National road 1 and National road 43 cross this region.

Bodies of water

There are 58 rivers in Itasy. 21 rivers are flowing in

, 17 rivers in

and 20 in

. 3500 ha are covered by lakes: 40 lakes in Miarinarivo, 9 lakes in Soavinandriana and 2 in Arivonimamo.

Lake Itasy

The region of Itasy is named after Lake Itasy, the fourth largest lake in Madagascar. The lake is in

Ampefy Ampefy is a municipality in Madagascar. It belongs to the district of Soavinandriana, which is a part of Itasy Region. The population of the commune was 19,949 in 2018. Primary and junior level secondary education are available in town. The m ...

, 120 km from the capital city of

Antananarivo Antananarivo ( French: ''Tananarive'', ), also known by its colonial shorthand form Tana, is the capital and largest city of Madagascar. The administrative area of the city, known as Antananarivo-Renivohitra ("Antananarivo-Mother Hill" or "A ...

Tourism

According to the ONTM (Office National de Tourism de Madagascar), more 60% of domestic tourists from the capital city use this as their short-stay holiday destination each year. However, this still amounts to less than 200 tourists per day, or up to 1200 tourists per day on national holidays.

, by lake Itasy, is the main tourist town.

Tourist sights

The region is famous for several features: * Lake Itasy, which is a source of livelihood for 3000 fisherman, with over 100 small canoes out daily; * The monument of the Virgin Mary, on the edge of the lake, marking the very centre of the country; * The isle of the Lake Itasy King, with a stone circle; * The two Lily Waterfalls, of which the first is 16 m high by 35 m wide and the second over 22 m high, but not as wide; * The Analavory Chute, which is over 20 m high; * Over 20 small lakes; * Boating and trekking experiences; * The Analavory geysers, which are coldwater geysers that occasionally reach a height of nearly 3 m and have formed high travertine mounds; * An ancient double-moated hillfort which can be seen near the town of

Soavinandriana Soavinandriana is a town and commune in Madagascar. It belongs to the district of Soavinandriana, which is a part of Itasy Region. The population of the commune was 40,045 in 2018. Only primary schooling is available. The majority 99% of the po ...

; * Substantial numbers of huge extinct volcanic craters, some with crater lakes; and *

Lemurs' Park Lemurs' Park (also known locally as Parc de lémuriens à Madagascar) is a small botanical garden and lemur reserve covering , and is located southwest of Antananarivo, Madagascar. It was founded around 2000 by Laurent Amouric and Maxime Allor ...

, which is seen at PK 22 (22 km) en route to Lake Itasy from the capital city.

Agriculture

Base of the economy is agriculture. Main crops and their size of cultivation (ha) are: * Rice (66000 ha) *

Peanut The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small an ...

(37279 ha) *

Corn Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. The ...

(37279 ha) *

Manioc ''Manihot esculenta'', commonly called cassava (), manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America. Although a perennial plant, cassava is extensively cultivated ...

(22872 ha) *

Bean A bean is the seed of several plants in the family Fabaceae, which are used as vegetables for human or animal food. They can be cooked in many different ways, including boiling, frying, and baking, and are used in many traditional dishes th ...

s (12204 ha) * Potatoes (9211 ha) *

Bambara groundnut ''Vigna subterranea'' (common names: Bambara groundnut, Bambara nut, Bambara bean, Congo goober, earth pea, ground-bean, or hog-peanut) is a member of the family Fabaceae. Its name is derived from the Bambara tribe, who currently lives in Mali. T ...

(4836 ha) * Tomatoes (4168 ha) *

Sweet potato The sweet potato or sweetpotato ('' Ipomoea batatas'') is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the bindweed or morning glory family, Convolvulaceae. Its large, starchy, sweet-tasting tuberous roots are used as a root vegetable. The young ...

es (1377 ha) * Ananas (3135 ha) *

sugar cane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) tall, perennial grass (in the genus '' Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fibrous stalk ...

(222ha) There is also cattle breeding. Itasy produces 2.7% of the zebu bread in Madagascar and 4,9 % of the porc that is raised in Madagascar.Guide Region Itasy
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References

{{Authority control Regions of Madagascar