Flag of Madagascar

Press Releases

Speeches Shim

Wednesday, December 23, 2020 - 6:15am

ANTANANARIVO - Logging and trafficking on local and international markets threatens Malagasy precious hardwoods--like rosewood, palisander, and ebony--with extinction.  These activities have devastating impacts on biodiversity and sustainable development and are difficult to combat without a tool to accurately identify the location of threatened hardwood species.

In response to this critical issue, the University of Antananarivo Department of Ecology and Plant Biology, with funding from the U.S. Government, through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and support from the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, has built Madagascar’s second precious hardwood reference library, or Xylarium.

U.S. Ambassador inspects a USAID food distribution activity in drought-stricken south Madagascar.  USAID has announced three new programs to address food insecurity in the south and south east.
Monday, December 14, 2020 - 12:30am

Alongside President Andry Rajoelina, U.S. Ambassador Michael P. Pelletier was pleased to announce three new projects funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), making an additional $100 million commitment by the United States to combat food insecurity in Madagascar.  Through these projects, the Government of the United States, working side-by-side with the Government of Madagascar, will respond to the urgent needs of families in hunger and provide long-term solutions to food insecurity in the south and southeast of Madagascar.

The Turtle Survival Alliance provides a vital service to the protection of Madagascar’s endemic tortoises
Tuesday, December 1, 2020 - 6:30am

The COVID-19 pandemic threatens more than the health and livelihoods of Madagascar’s people; it also jeopardizes thousands of critically endangered tortoises currently in the care of the Turtle Survival Alliance (TSA).  Facing a projected 80% drop in funding from its largest supporters -- zoos and aquariums now shuttered due to COVID-19 -- TSA thought it would soon be forced to prematurely release thousands of critically endangered tortoises under its care in Madagascar.

The U.S. Government has funded annual indoor residual spraying (IRS) campaigns in Madagascar since 2008
Friday, November 27, 2020 - 12:15am

Malaria remains a severe risk to millions of people in Madagascar.  It is the fourth leading cause of disease and one of the top reasons people seek care at health centers.  Since the beginning of the year, over 1.4 million people in Madagascar, 5.6% of the population, have fallen ill with malaria. The U.S. Government is the largest single country donor to Madagascar's health sector, providing $62 million each year to fund the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) health activities, including $26 million for malaria prevention and treatment.

A Power Africa grant of $1.2 million to develop mini-grids will bring electricity to more than 5,200 rural homes and businesses in Madagascar.
Monday, November 23, 2020 - 6:15am

The United States Government, through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Power Africa initiative, has awarded three companies in Madagascar a combined $1.2 million in grant funding to develop mini-grids that will bring electricity to more than 5,200 rural homes and businesses.  These grants are part of the U.S. Government’s $3 million effort to increase energy production and electricity access in Madagascar.  Since 2018, the initiative has helped more than 57,000 people gain access to electricity and will, by 2022, provide electricity to over 400,000 people.

This equipment will strengthen Madagascar's information management system, enhance teleworking capacity, and improve coordination between the national and regional levels of governance.
Friday, November 6, 2020 - 8:15am

The U.S. Government, through the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Rural Access to New Opportunities in Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (RANO WASH) project, has donated $18,000 of computer equipment, including desktop and laptop computers, smartphones, and teleconferencing equipment, to the Ministry of Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene.

Health Agent Sougra Banou Myriam Issa takes care of a child affected by severe acute malnutrition in the Maroalipoty health center.
Monday, October 19, 2020 - 6:45am

As food insecurity in southern Madagascar becomes more severe, the United States Government, through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), has provided $2.5 million to UNICEF and the World Food Programme (WFP) to provide treatment for children under five years of age who are suffering from moderate and severe acute malnutrition.

PMI Measure Malaria continues the work of Measure Evaluation that trained more than 200 district managers in surveillance, monitoring, and evaluation for malaria care.
Thursday, October 8, 2020 - 2:45am

The United States Government, through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the President's Malaria Initiative (PMI), in partnership with Madagascar’s Ministry of Public Health (MOPH), is officially launching the PMI Measure Malaria project to build up the national health information system and combat malaria in Madagascar. Funded by USAID and PMI, PMI Measure Malaria is a five-year project operating in 10 countries across Africa, including Madagascar. In the current year, the U.S. Government is contributing nearly $1.5 million to implement activities here.

The United States Government has officially launched the opening of new clean water systems in two communes that brings fresh, clean water to over 10,000 people.
Friday, September 25, 2020 - 6:15am

For too many years, the communities of Anosibe Ifody (Moramanga, Alaotra Mangoro region) and Niarovana Caroline (Vatomandry, Atsinanana region) in Eastern Madagascar have struggled under the burden of undependable, contaminated water sources that led to sickness and poor sanitation. Anosibe Ifody was plagued with water quality problems including siltation during the rainy season and bacteriological contamination.  Meanwhile, the citizens of Niarovana Caroline frequently face bouts of bilharziasis, a disease caused by a water-born pathogen.

These tablets will allow health workers to more quickly and easily conduct surveillance and report back to district officials
Friday, September 4, 2020 - 5:15am

The U.S. Government’s President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) are donating 65 tablet computers to support the Government of Madagascar’s plan to stamp out malaria in the districts of Antsirabe II and Antsiranana I. The U.S. Government, through PMI and USAID, supports Madagascar’s Ministry of Public Health and the National Malaria Control Program (NMCP) to reduce malaria in Madagascar.  Part of the national anti-malaria strategy is to completely eliminate malaria in districts that have a low number of cases. 

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