Travel Guide Majunga – Mahajanga

Mahajanga is a historic center: it was from this ancient fishing port that the Sakalava kingdom of Boeny developed. The name Mahajanga comes from the Swahili Mji angaïa, meaning "city of flowers".When King Andriamandisoarivo decided to promote regional trade in the mid-18th century, he abandoned the kingdom's capital, Marovoay, in favor of Mahajanga. The aim was to develop foreign trade: slaves and guns, precious stones and fabrics, spices and tools - these were the "goods" that made the port a success.Today, Mahajanga, the country's second-largest port, trades mainly with Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Europe. This large city of over 250,000 inhabitants, undoubtedly the most cosmopolitan in Madagascar, is made up of Sakalava, Tsimihety, Merina, Comorians, Arabs, Indo-Pakistanis, Chinese... In the town center, where the columns of colonial buildings stand side by side with Arab trading posts, the languor of the pavements reigns. While the call to prayer is a reminder of the influence of Islam, between midday and 3pm, the whole city falls asleep in the torpor of the siesta. Mahajanga is indeed a very hot city: temperatures can reach 40°C. While the economy is based on maritime trade and fishing, agriculture is not to be outdone: in the fertile Betsiboka plain, crops such as cotton, tobacco, corn, peanuts and rice surround the town. Regional industry is represented by slaughterhouses and oil mills, textile workshops and sugar mills, cement works and metallurgy. An economic, administrative and university center, the city is constantly expanding. Finally, Mahajanga is one of the main seaside destinations for the inhabitants of Tana: the entire region is even a major tourist center... for the Malagasy. Baobab forests, scattered islands, forest reserves, lakes and caves surround this beautiful site bordering a purple bay cradled by the waters of the Betsiboka estuary. Its natural and cultural heritage makes it one of Madagascar's most attractive cities. In 2017, the Kamoro Bridge (RN4) was inaugurated in the presence of the French Ambassador to Madagascar. Built by the French company Eiffage, it facilitates traffic between Tana and Majunga. The immediate proximity of Mayotte (only 40 min by air) makes it a destination well worth discovering!