| Date | May 2018 | Marks available | 2 | Reference code | 18M.1.SL.TZ0.2 |
| Level | Standard Level | Paper | Paper 1 | Time zone | Time zone 0 |
| Command term | Identify | Question number | 2 | Adapted from | N/A |
Question
Figure 2: Fact file on Madagascar
- Madagascar is the fourth largest island in the world. It is located in the Indian Ocean, off the eastern coast of Mozambique, Africa.
- The population is approximately 24 million (July 2016).
- In 2016, the crude birth rate was 32.1/1000 population and crude death rate was 6.7/1000 population.
- The main employment sectors are agriculture, fisheries and forestry.
- Exports include textiles, nickel and produce such as coffee, vanilla, sugar and shellfish.
- Areas of forest are being cleared for:
- Traditional farming – most of the population relies on traditional subsistence farming
- Timber – hardwoods such as ebony and rosewood are of high economic value
- Charcoal production – spiny bush wood is commonly used for charcoal production.
- Soil erosion is a serious problem in Madagascar. In some areas, up to 363 tonnes/ha/year of soil are being lost.
[Sources: The World Factbook 2018. Washington, DC: Central Intelligence Agency, 2018 https://www.cia.gov/library/
publications/the-world-factbook/index.html and Rhett Butler/WildMadagascar.org]
Figure 3(a): Age–gender pyramid for Madagascar in 2016
Figure 3(b): Population curve for Madagascar (1960–2015)
With reference to Figures 2, 3(a) and 3(b), identify two reasons why Madagascar is considered to be at Stage 2 of the demographic transition model.
Markscheme
high birth rate;
falling/decreasing/declining death rate / increasing life expectancy;
rapid growth in population / growth rate of 2.54% (32.1–6.7/10) / population has increased almost fivefold since 1960 / high rate of natural increase (NIR) / population is exponentially increasing;
population doubling time of 27.56 years (70/(2.54));
wide base of age-sex pyramid / largest age group is 0–4 years / predominantly young population / high proportion of population are children (under 19).
Do not accept only values of either birth rate or death rate e.g. “death rate is 6.7/1000”; response needs to specify whether it is high or decreasing respectively.
Do not accept “low death rate” or just “increase/growth in population”.
Do not accept “crude birth rate is higher/greater than crude death rate” as this is applicable to other DTM stages.
Do not accept only “many/lots of children / more births/many births”.
Do not accept “industry is mostly agriculture/forestry/fishery”.
Examiners report
Most candidates achieved at least one mark for this question. Common errors were to focus on the prevalent industry in Madagascar or give responses that lacked the required detail that differentiated it from other stages of the DTM e.g. stating there is a growth in the population without linking to scale or rate of change or that crude birth rates are higher than crude death rates.
