Mahajangā

Mahajanga stands on Bombetoka Bay at the mouth of the Betsiboka River, on Madagascar's northwestern coast. Its harbour connects the inland river country with the Mozambique Channel. Malagasy, Antalaotra and overseas merchants met and traded here, making the port an important centre of exchange in the Sakalava kingdom of Boina.

During the eighteenth century Boina's rulers controlled much of the trade passing through the port. Merchant ships arrived from the East African coast and farther afield seeking provisions and enslaved people. The slave trade brought wealth to merchants and rulers while exposing many communities inland to raids and violence. Mahajanga's position at the head of a navigable estuary made it a meeting place for commerce carried by river and sea.