Madagascar

Despite its many assets, Madagascar is today one of the poorest countries in the world. It is also an island country with a wealth of unique biodiversity. Since 1952, AFD has been supporting a number of actors in the country: NGOs, local authorities, companies and authorities, to support inclusive and sustainable development.
  • logo linkedin
  • logo email
Antananarive, Madagascar
AFD and Madagascar: Developing the island’s economic potential and preserving the environment
Canal, Antananarivo, Madagascar

Promoting sustainable cities

Antananarive, Madagascar

Promoting sustainable cities

Due to strong and uncontrolled growth, Madagascar’s cities are home to acute poverty with its consequences: insecurity, squalor, slums and urban precariousness. They also suffer from air and water pollution and recurrent flooding. Urban development presents both an environmental and social risk and an opportunity for the economic development of the country.

AFD’s actions aim to promote sustainable cities, in both the capital Antananarivo and the main provincial cities. AFD’s financing targets the four core functions of cities: provide widespread access to essential services (water, lighting, etc.), foster urban mobility, promote decent housing conditions, and support economic activities and local employment.

At the same time, we help improve the governance of urban municipalities and build their capacities to plan the territory’s development and urban investments.
 

Reconciling agricultural development and environmental conservation

agriculture, Madagascar

Reconciling agricultural development and environmental conservation 

Every year, Madagascar needs to import between 200,000 and 500,000 tons of cereals, which accounts for 5 to 15% of its needs. Since 1960, rural poverty has increased, due to the lack of modernization of agriculture. Madagascar’s biodiversity is today under great threat from human activities. In addition, the very small size of farms (less than 1 ha on average) and land insecurity are major obstacles to their development.

AFD seeks to support Madagascar’s agricultural policy and considers that agricultural development and biodiversity conservation are inextricably linked in Madagascar. The projects we finance aim to improve farmers’ performance and climate resilience through agroecology, build the capacity of local actors to control their environment and support biodiversity-friendly rural development.
 

Returning to high-quality education and training

education, primary school, Madagascar

Returning to high-quality education and training

Since 2009, there has been a deterioration of the performance of Malagasy students in international assessments. Vocational education is unsuited to business needs.

AFD works with the Malagasy authorities to improve the quality of education in primary and secondary schools. It also supports the administration and companies through a partnership-based approach to revitalize vocational training.

Boosting employment

vocational training, Madagascar, decent employment

Boosting employment

Only 10% of people in Madagascar benefit from a formal job. It is estimated that 80% of them are underemployed. Yet Madagascar has a diversified entrepreneurial base which is capable of exporting. These companies do, however, remain small.

AFD supports job creation by allocating guarantees for business investment. Over 100 companies have already benefited from loans guaranteed by AFD.

We also support microfinance for microenterprises and individual entrepreneurs.

Strengthening governance

justice, governance

Strengthening governance

The institutional instability which has marked the last sixty years is largely due to the economic underperformance of Madagascar – GDP per capita has been declining since 1960. However, the country has just experienced a democratic change, which suggests that governance will improve.

Following on from France’s action in Madagascar, AFD is supporting the restoration of an accessible, effective and incorruptible justice system that contributes to the rule of law. It also works to promote the emergence of more effective urban municipalities that are close to citizens.

Our crosscutting objective in each of our sectors of operation is to support the development of transparent, effective and accountable institutions
 

112
projects financed in 15 years
520
million euros committed in 15 years
900,000
people benefit from improved living conditions in precarious neighborhoods

With its 24 million inhabitants and a surface area of some 590,000 km², Madagascar is one of the world’s largest islands. It is located in the southwest Indian Ocean and is separated from Africa by the Mozambique Channel. It is also one of the poorest countries in the world: over 90% of the population lives on less than $2 a day.

Madagascar has a particularly rich environment and exceptional biodiversity: over 80% of its plant and animal species are endemic. It is also one of the most vulnerable ecological systems to climate change, environmental risks and natural disasters. 

Madagascar has suffered from political instability for several years. The repeated crises have hampered development, particularly in infrastructure and public services. Yet the island has a number of industrial sectors with high added value, such as agro-industry, textiles, new technologies, tourism and craft industries. 

AFD has been operating in Madagascar for 70 years, where it works to fight poverty and support economic development. Since 2016, it has also been working on strengthening decentralized local authorities and improving the functioning of the justice system.

AFD's Madagascar office is directly attached to the Indian Ocean regional office in Saint-Denis.
 

Interactive map
This map is for illustrative purposes only and does not engage the responsibility of the AFD Group
Launch search
See map of all projects

Downloads

Institutional document

Adapt'Action: Tackling Climate Change Together

More than 3 billion people live in contexts that are highly vulnerable to climate change (IPCC, 2022

...
Nov 2022
Institutional document

Indian Ocean - 2019-2023 Regional Strategy

At the Interministerial Committee for International Cooperation and Development (CICID) on February

...
Apr 2020
Institutional document

Three Oceans Strategy

Present in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans, France has five departments and regions and seve

...
Oct 2019
Filmed evaluation

Diverting Solid Waste

This work takes as its starting point the findings of local authorities in the global South: as and

...
Oct 2020
Research document

Evaluation of projects with climate adaptation co-benefits in sub-Saharan Africa and Madagascar (2007-2018)

Since 2015, AFD’s financing for projects with "adaptation" co-benefits - helping to respond to the r

...
Dec 2023
Research document

Flooding: Prevention as the Best Option

Across the world, flooding remains the most frequent and most damaging natural risk. This technical

...
May 2021
Research document

Hard Times for Developing Countries: Africa’s Financing Needs in Question

Semestrial Panoramas are special issues of the MacroDev series written by AFD analysts; They present

...
Sep 2021
Research document

Diverting Solid Waste

This work takes as its starting point the findings of local authorities in the global South: as and

...
Oct 2020
Evaluation document

AFD-funded Resident Technical Assistance

Since the CICID (Inter-ministerial Committee for International Co-operation and Development) meeting

...
Nov 2007
Video

Innovate for sanitation

In 2012 a call for proposals for FISONG projects was launched in the field of "Sanitation, hygiene an

...
Feb 2019
View all publications

Contact