Why we do it

of children drop out of elementary school.²

of teachers do not have a professional teaching diploma.²

of people live below the international poverty line of USD 2.15/capita/day.¹

of women aged between 20 and 24 state that they got married before the age of 18.²

In 2018, 1.05 % of Madagascans aged 25 and older from rural areas completed a bachelor's degree. Approximately nine times less than people from urban regions, where the average is 9.53 %.³ These data confirm the social inequality between urban and rural areas.

Madagascar is the fifth largest island in the world and is located in the Indian Ocean off the coast of southern Africa. Despite its considerable natural resources, the country has one of the highest poverty rates in the world with around 28 million inhabitants (as of 2020)¹.

Development prospects in Madagascar continue to be hampered by the country's low growth potential and its frequent, deep and prolonged crises.¹

The situation in the village community of Fihaonana confirms the national development deficits. Fihaonana is located about 60 km northwest of the capital Antananarivo and is a 232.8 km² village community inhabited by 23'700 people (as of 2019), consisting of 18 sub-communities. People in Fihaonana mainly work as self-sufficient farmers, stonecutters or simple traders. With this hard work, the daily income is generally between MGA 3'000 and MGA 5'000 (approx. CHF 0.65 to CHF 1.10).⁴

Eight different groups of people have both positive and negative influence on the success of the project: young people (direct target group), parents or persons with custody (indirect target group), donors, employees, universities, tutors, Fihaonana villagers and high schools in Fihaonana.

In addition to ours, eleven projects are currently being implemented in Fihaonana. Around half of these are agricultural projects. There are no education projects. The only education project is a school, which is attended by around a dozen pupils. To our knowledge, there is only one NGO in the country, Promes Madagascar, with a similar approach.⁴

Lack of value consciousness for education -> choice of least resistance

Low level of education -> Unqualified occupation

Lack of career choice information -> Wrong career choices.

High tuition costs -> Social inequality

Unknown extent of the problem -> Disastrously poor educational support for disadvantaged individuals.

Urban-rural differences in mentality -> Social division