Madagascar is such a beautiful country, with lots of natural resources (oil, rare timber, minerals) and 90% of its fauna and flora is endemic. It's huge, has al

Madagascar is such a beautiful country, with lots of natural resources (oil, rare timber, minerals) and 90% of its fauna and flora is endemic. It's huge, has almost any kind of scenery you could wish and is easily one of the most interesting places to visit on earth. Those interested should check out Sir David Attenborough's 4 part series on Madagascar: http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/collections/p00db3n8 http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/collections/p00db3n8 Yet it suffers from extreme poverty, an unbelievable level of corruption at all levels, and an education system that leaves everyone behind (school isn't free, so most kids can't afford it). In recent decades, poverty has made the population desperate, levels of violence have risen, kidnappings are common, there is no real reason to think that the current elections are going to solve anything, those aspiring to be in power have proven to be as corrupted as those who are already in place. On top of that, during the cyclone season (hurricane/typhoon if you come from other parts of the world), the island becomes a giant target and gets hammered by bad weather: houses destroyed, roads cuts, etc In that context, it isn't surprising to learn that old diseases like the bubonic plague could easily get a hold; sanitation isn't high in the list of priorities.