Five employees of mining firm Kraoma have been reported abducted in Madagascar.

A senior military officer, who requested anonymity since he is not authorised to talk to the media, said the five were taken hostage from their Brieville Tsaratanana residence on Monday.

Tsaratanana, about 240km north of the capital Antananarivo, is a part of Betsiboka Region

The release

The section of the Madagascar central highlands, is an insecurity hotbed.

Local authorities said on Tuesday that the abductors had demanded a huge ransom for the release of the Kraoma workers.

Paris-based magazine the Paris Match on Sunday published a report describing the recurrence of kidnapping in Madagascar as terrifying.

The wealthy French-Indian community on the island nation were often the main target of the kidnappers.

Rural residents

Over 110 of the community members have been kidnapped since 1991, according to the Paris Match.

New trends have, however, emerged in the recent past with even poorer rural residents being abducted for ransom.

Kraoma is a state-owned company that exports about 140,000 tons chromium per year. Its main export destinations are China, Japan and Sweden.