Madagascar

Madagascar

Off the coast of southern Africa and in the Southwestern Indian Ocean, the island nation of Madagascar covers approximately 587,000 square kilometres of surface area and is organised into 22 administrative divisions. As of 2013 the country’s total population was estimated at 21.8 million. Demographically, Madagascar is a relatively young nation with 49 per cent of the population under the age of 15. According to the 2013 edition of the United Nations Human Development Index, Madagascar ranked 151 out of 187 countries. In 2002 and 2009, severe political crises aggravated the country’s economy, depressing stability, security and fuelling corruption. Since, the country has seen modest economic gains; however, in 2010 approximately 76.5 per cent of Malagasies still lived below the poverty line.

Main Barriers to Education

Poverty
Gender Discrimination
Lack of School Infrastructure
Lack of Inclusive Educational Settings

Interventions to barriers

Stakeholder Engagement
MOE Capacity Building
Policy Advocacy
Teacher Training

With the election of a democratic government in 2014, Madagascar embarked upon ambitious social sector projects, especially as regards health, infrastructure and education. The government recognised education as the cornerstone of sustainable development, and allocated 20 per cent of ressources nationales internes to education spending – 42 per cent of which was specifically earmarked for primary levels. Furthermore, the government’s EFA plan elaborates a holistic approach to education sector reform involving multiple ministries, development partners and civil society.

Despite the Malagasy Government’s demonstrable commitment to realise the goals of EFA, access barriers remain and impede the path to primary education. The legacy of the country’s political turmoil looms, as primary-level education witnessed negative trend lines with respect to drop-out and completion rates. Moreover, disparities between and within regions, as well as rural and urban locales of the country, are unrelenting and bode poorly for children in the most vulnerable families.

In support of Madagascar’s education sector and OOSC, EAC has partnered with Handicap International (HI) to increase access to quality primary education. The joint project will seek to cultivate inclusive education settings that respond to the needs of all children, with a particular emphasis on those with disabilities, by establishing multi-sector care and bridge mechanisms within mainstream schools. In addition, HI will train relevant MOE staff on the design/implementation of inclusive education for systemic impact.

Geographic Location: Southern Africa

Languages: Malagasy (official), French (official), English

Year added:

2012

Projects

Towards a Universal Access for Vulnerable Girls and Boys to a Quality Primary Education

In developing countries, disability tends to be linked with poverty and hinders access to education. It is estimated that 90 per cent of children with disabilities (CwDs) are not schooled. According to UNICEF reporting being identified as disabled has a significant influence on the likelihood of education exclusion in West and Central Africa.

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Partners

Handicap International

In partnership with EAC, Handicap International aims to reach more than 28,000 out of school children (OOSC) of primary age with disabilities across ten sub-Saharan African countries.