Madagascar

WHERE WE WORK > MADAGASCAR

Holistic Development for Vulnerable Women, Girls and Children

Since 1979, the Good Shepherd missions have been focused on the empowerment of the most vulnerable communities in Madagascar, in particular women, girls, and children.

Since 2017, in partnership with GSIF, programs have been improved and expanded to promote the well-being of children, girls and women towards greater empowerment and recognition of their rights. The different missions include shelters for girls and young mothers, victims of all kind of abuse, violence or exploitation, preschools and primary schools for street children and children and young girls from poor backgrounds, and vocational training centers for women and girls to gain skills like tailoring, sewing, catering etc., and become financially self-sustainable. Additionally, support and care are provided to women in prison, and the dispensary in Sandrandahy offers medical care to the most vulnerable. The interventions supported by GSIF are aimed at protecting and rehabilitating young girls in vulnerable conditions at risk or victims of violence and sexual abuses, while shaping a more just and equal society free from social stigmas and negligence of violence against children, girls and young women. Beside the protection and the support missions, the programs are engaging communities through awareness raising activities on womenā€™s, girlsā€™ and childrenā€™s rights to make the social environment a safer place.

The overall interventions in the country aim, by 2027, to protect and support more than 10,000 girls, women, and 1,500 children in vulnerable situations so that they become autonomous, within a society more respectful of their rights.

Key projects

  • Shelters for women, girls and children in Morondava, Itaosy and Ifarihy: the various centers provide psycho-social support and assistance to young girls, single mothers and minors, most of whom have suffered violence or abuse of all kinds, to help them overcome their traumas.
  • Social and economic empowerment for women and girls through training courses at the rural and women’s promotion center in Sandranday, the Fihavananasocial centerĀ  in Amparibe (education and care for children and teenagers in St-Joseph; school and women’s promotion, IT and hairdressing, etc…in Mahamasina Antananarivo), and the training center in Morondava (courses in sewing, tailoring, cooking and pastry-making).
  • Children are supported in their dignity and education in Itaosy (preschool with canteen), Sandrandahy (primary school and college) and Morondava (preschool and primary school with canteen).
  • Health care service at affordable costs or free of charge for vulnerable people at the dispensary in Sandrandahy.
  • Service for women in prison at the Antanimora – Antananarivo penitentiary in Amparibe, which provides individual support, daily meals, care and vocational training with a view to their reintegration.Ā 

PROJECTS LOCATIONS

Sandrandahy, Itaosy, Amparibe, Morondava, Antsirabe, Ifarihy

HIGHLIGHTS

5

Projects

6136

Participants

35

Local staff

AREAS OF INTERVENTION

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Girls and Women's Empowerment
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Community Strengthening and Participation
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Human Rights

COUNTRY BACKGROUND / OVERVIEW

Despite its wealth of natural and mineral resources and a tourism industry boosted by its unique environment, Madagascar has one of the highest poverty rates in the world (76.4%, UNDP 2022).Ā 

The country’s extreme poverty, inequitable income distribution, cyclical political crises, mismanagement of resources, and recurrent severe climate shocks (such as cyclones and floods) affect the financial and social situation of the population These factors generate increasing violence within many families, with girls and women being the first victims. The Malagasy society, very traditional and patriarchal, does not consider women as full members, subjecting them to humiliation, domestic violence, and sexual abuse, with gender-based violence being the norm.

Culture and customs of some regions of Madagascar generate significant inequalities and are responsible for the violation of the rights of children, girls, and women. Due to poverty, early and forced marriages are increasingly frequent in the country, as is sex tourism. The Malagasy social structure favors boys, and most of the time, especially in provinces, girls do not have access to education and other fundamental rights. Drought and poverty have led to severe food insecurity, particularly in southern Madagascar, causing massive migrations across the island, with children and women being the first victims.

Facts and figures

  • 177/193 ranking UNDPHuman Development Index (2022)
  • 35% of women aged 15-49 have experienced physical or sexual violence, and about 44% of women have experienced emotional, physical, or sexual violence by their husband/partner (Demographic and Health Survey 2021)
  • 2 out of 5 girls marry or enter into a conjugal union before the age of 18, making Madagascar one of the countries with one of the highest child marriage rates in the world (UNICEF)

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