Ilakaka

Ilakaka is a small town in the south west of Madagascar along the R7 national route towards Tulear. Ilakaka is a sapphire boom town that has grown from less than 50 residents in the 90s to over 30,000 today. Since 2008 most sapphire stones originate from this region, making Madagascar the world's largest sapphire exporter.

Directly north of the road lies Isalo National Park, which likely has large deposits of sapphires, but the area is nature protected where mining is not permitted. Most mining activity occurs directly south east of the main road.

The mining work is primarely carried out by Malagasy workers managed by small businesses and temporary resident dealers who come mostly from Sri Lanka and Thailand, where they bring the rough stones for cutting.

There are various other smaller sapphire towns along the road westwards, such as Antsotramadoro and Sakaraha.

Further information on Ilakaka, see the Madagascar Sapphire Rush article.