Mandritsara maɳɖʐiˈtsarə̥ is a city and commune (commune urbain) in northern Madagascar

Madagascar

The Republic of Madagascar is an island country located in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa...

. It belongs to the district

Districts of Madagascar

Districts are second-level administrative divisions of Madagascar below the regions. Districts are in their turn divided into communes; while some of the districts on urban areas such as the district of Toliara consists of only one commune, most of the districts are divided typically into...

 of Mandritsara

Mandritsara District

Mandritsara is a district in northern Madagascar. It's a part of Sofia Region and borders the districts of Befandriana-Nord in north, Maroantsetra in northeast, Mananara in east, Soanierana Ivongo in southeast, Andilamena in south and Boriziny in west...

, which is a part of Sofia Region

Sofia Region

Sofia is a region in northern Madagascar. It is named for the Sofia River.* Capital: Antsohihy* Area: 50 800 km²Districts:*Mandritsara District*Befandriana-Nord District*Bealanana District*Antsohihy District*Analalava District...

. The population of the commune was estimated to be approximately 17,000 in 2001 commune census

Census

A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

.

Mandritsara is served by a local airport. In addition to primary schooling the town offers secondary education at both junior and senior levels. The town has a permanent court and hospital Hopitaly Vaovao Mahafaly – a Baptist mission hospital whose name means "Good News Hospital" (or, literally, "Hospital of the news that makes you happy").

Farming and raising livestock provides employment for 40% and 35% of the working population. The most important crop is rice

Rice

Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...

, while other important products are peanut

Peanut

The peanut, or groundnut , is a species in the legume or "bean" family , so it is not a nut. The peanut was probably first cultivated in the valleys of Peru. It is an annual herbaceous plant growing tall...

s and cassava

Cassava

Cassava , also called yuca or manioc, a woody shrub of the Euphorbiaceae native to South America, is extensively cultivated as an annual crop in tropical and subtropical regions for its edible starchy tuberous root, a major source of carbohydrates...

. Services provide employment for 25% of the population.