Language

The Malagasy language is of Malayo-Polynesian origin and is generally spoken throughout the island. French is spoken among the educated population of this former French colony. English, although still rare, is becoming more widely spoken and in 2003, the government began a pilot project of introducing the teaching of English into the primary grades of 44 schools, with hopes of taking the project nationwide. Many Peace Corps volunteers are serving to further this effort and train teachers.

In the first Constitution of Madagascar (1960), Malagasy and French were named the "official languages of the republic". In the current Constitution, there is no official language recorded, instead Malagasy is named the "national language".