Juan de Nova Island

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Juan de Nova Island (locally Ile Juan de Nova) is a 4.4 square kilometer low, flat, tropical island in the Mozambique Channel, about one-third of the way between Madagascar and Mozambique at 17°03'S, 42°45'E.

It is a possession of France administered by a high commissioner of the Republic in Réunion and defended by France, but is also claimed by Madagascar. Its data code is JU. Its only railway is a short line going to a jetty, it has no ports or harbors, offshore anchorage only, and only one airport, an unpaved strip about 1000 meters long.

The island has no indigenous population, though there is a small military garrison and a meteorological station. 90% of the island is a forested wildlife sanctuary. Its only exploitable natural resources are guano deposits and other fertilizers. 12,000 tons of guano are mined per year.

See also: Islands controlled by France in the Indian and Pacific oceans

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