'''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 about over 30,000 today. Since 2008 most of the worlds sapphire stones in the world originate from this region, making Madagascar the world's largest sapphire exporter.'''
Directly north of the road lies {| class="imageTable"|-|colspan="3" | [[Isalo National ParkFile:Ilakaka 021.jpg|600px]]|-|[[File:Ilakaka 013.jpg|196px]]|align="center"|[[File:Ilakaka 001.jpg|196px]]|align="right"|[[File:Ilakaka 007.jpg|196px]]|-|[[File:Ilakaka 005.jpg|196px]], which likely has large deposits of sapphires, but the area is nature protected where mining is not permitted|align="center"|[[File:Ilakaka 006.jpg|196px]]|align="right"|[[File:Ilakaka 017.jpg|196px]]|}
North of the road lies [[Isalo National Park]], which likely has large deposits of sapphires, but as the area is nature protected and mining is not permitted there. Most mining activity occurs directly south and east of the main road.
The mining work is primarely carried out by Malagasy workers run by small businesses<googlemap version="0.9" lat="-22.697753" lon="45.21831" type="satellite" zoom="16" scale="yes" controls="large" style="width:100%;max-width:600px;">-22.697793, with resident dealers mostly from Sri Lanka and Thailand where the rough stones are usually sent for cutting45.218654Ilakaka</googlemap>
There The mining work is primarily carried out by Malagasy workers who are various managed by small businesses and temporarily resident dealers, many of whom are of Sri Lankan, Thai or Chinese origin. The rough stones are usually brought to either Thailand or Sri Lanka for cutting. Various other smaller sapphire towns can be found along the road southwestwards, such as [[Antsotramadoro]] and [[Sakahara]]. == Accommodation == '''Friends Hotel'''<br>Tel: +261 (0)33 14 951 21 or +261 (0)33 14 706 76 or +261 (0)33 14 710 50<br><!-- Email: [mailto:friendsbungal@yahoo.fr friendsbungal@yahoo.fr] BOUNCED! --> == Additional information == * [[Madagascar Sapphire Rush]]* [[Ilakaka photos]]* [http://www.madagemstones.com madagemstones.com]* [http://www.madagascar-gems.com madagascar-gems.com]* [http://www.madagems.com madagems.com]* http://www.thegmanifesto.com/2009/04/the-madagascar-sapphire-report.html* [http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-32962318 In pictures: Madagascar's sapphire mining rush] - BBC News, 4 July 2015* [http://www.primemedia.international/madagascar-destinations-guide-ilakaka.html Ilakaka City: the Wild West is over!] - Prime Magazine, 4 May 2018
