_#_Maritime claims:
Exclusive economic zone: 200 nm;
Territorial sea: 12 nm
_#_Climate: tropical, but moderates with elevation; cool and dry from May to November, hot and rainy from November to April
_#_Terrain: mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast
_#_Natural resources: fish, arable land
_#_Land use: arable land 20%; permanent crops 2%; meadows and pastures 4%; forest and woodland 35%; other 39%; includes irrigated 2%
_#_Environment: periodic devastating cyclones
_#_Note: located 750 km east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean
_*People #_Population: 607,086 (July 1991), growth rate 1.9% (1991)