IOM Madagascar Annual Report 2019
COUNTRY CONTEXT The year 2019 has been one of transition in Madagascar. The country capped a peaceful, democratic, and internationally acclaimed presidential election, with the swearing in of President-elect Andry Rajoelina on 19 January 2019. With that came the formation of a new Malagasy Government, and senses of new starts, under the upcoming “Plan pour l’Émergence de Madagascar” based on the 13 commitments made by the then-presidential candidate Andry Rajoelina under its election manifesto promising to set Madagascar on a new course, scale up growth and substantially reduce poverty. But the prospect of a reinvigorated and nationally owned process of development cannot eclipse the vast challenges that lie ahead and that broad segments of the population continues to experience in their day to day lives. With more than seventy per cent of the population living in extreme poverty, Madagascar’s development challenges remain vast. Madagascar’s education, health, and nutrition outcomes