Written by Kira Liljegren
Over the past few years, public and government support for cooperatives has been steadily
growing in Madagascar. Through assistance from various international and local organizations,
the movement that began back in the early 20th century has hit a breakthrough in the form of
monumental new legislation. The proposed framework consists of 240 articles, aiming to foster
local production and generate new economic opportunities by increasing the credibility of
cooperatives within the country. Most importantly, the law will allow cooperatives to label their
products with the name of the community where they were created: this will promote adherence
to global standards as well as encouraging both domestic and international product distribution.
Madagascar’s new legislation symbolizes a huge step forward for not only Madagascar
cooperatives, but the cooperative movement at large.
From 1897 through 1958, the people of Madagascar suffered under French colonial rule, forced
to work on French plantations and largely denied access to education or well-paying jobs. It was
during this time that the Madagascar cooperative movement first emerged in response to the
difficulties faced by all Madagascans, especially those residing in rural areas, who had limited
access to credit or marketing opportunities. Cooperatives promoted individual empowerment
and economic development, and the establishment of agricultural credit unions in the 1920s
represented a massive step forward for the Madagascan cooperative movement as a whole. For
the first time, farmers all over the country were able to access affordable credit and properly
invest in the development of their businesses–the move also helped develop a new, true
community among farmers in Madagascar.
As the fight for independence from France began, the Madagascan cooperative movement
continued to gain momentum, reaching a new level of prominence in the 1950s and 1960s
which then promptly declined in the 1980s and 1990s under the rule of the socialist Democratic
Republic of Madagascar and its market-oriented economic liberalization policies. Despite this
backtracking, under Madagascar’s current semipresidential democratic republic government
structure, the popularity of cooperatives has once again begun to rise. Cooperatives in the
country are no longer limited to just the agricultural sector: they have also expanded to services,
fishing, and crafts, among others.
In 2018, with the help of various international organizations, the Madagascan government
crafted its first national strategy for cooperative development. Since then, the law has
undergone a lengthy process of numerous debates, drafts, and revisions. Previously, one of the
most significant challenges faced by cooperative members in Madagascar was the lack of a tax
framework for cooperatives; however, with the passing of the 2023 Finance Law, which includes
the first ever stipulations for cooperatives in the country, this could be about to change.
Madagascar’s new cooperative legislation aims additionally to not only establish and preserve
the role of cooperative businesses in its economy but also solidify their future. The proposed law
will lower the required number of founding members for cooperatives from seven to five
members 18 and older. In simplifying the member requirement, the Madagascan government
hopes to encourage wider adoption of and participation in the cooperative model among
businesses and individual citizens in the country. This move, combined with new legal
provisions to expand the training, education, and other benefits that cooperative members
receive, will help ensure Madagascar’s success in this endeavor.
The median age among Madagascar residents is 19.3. With its young population and over 60%
of its people residing in rural areas, the country is uniquely poised to reap the benefits of the
cooperative business model. Cooperatives empower small communities; they enable residents
to pool their resources and access markets that would otherwise be out of reach. The social
welfare component of cooperatives can create safety nets and support to those who need it
most, and the skills and education that being a member of a cooperative provides can help
generate enhanced social mobility among populations that may otherwise find themselves
“stuck” in their lower social classes, such as the rural communities of Madagascar. These
benefits, combined with the infrastructure development generated by certain types of
cooperatives, have the potential to uplift Madagascar’s population in almost imaginable ways–it
is no wonder that so many Madagascans and international members of the cooperative
movement alike are waiting with bated breath for the proposed legislation to be passed officially
into law.
Despite the significant stride forward that this new legislation represents for the cooperative
movement in Madagascar, there is still work to be done. Madagascan cooperatives are in
desparate need of an apex body to coordinate among various sectors and advocate for
cooperative rights. Additionally, Madagascar has no formal programs that provide cooperative
education. Until it takes these next key steps, the country will likely remain unable to fully
capitalize off of the benefits it stands to gain by embracing the cooperative movement–which is
why advocates for the advancement of the movement in Madagascar must continue to keep
pushing for these vital changes to be made. Although the new cooperative legislation currently
circulating among various Madagascan governmental bodies is undeniably a huge victory, there
remains more to be done. Similarly, the international cooperative movement recently enjoyed
massive success with the UN General Assembly’s adoption of a Resolution on the Social and
Solidarity Economy. While the resolution represents hope for the promotion of cooperative
values at a larger scale than ever before, advocates for the cooperative movement must
continue to fight for the legislative integration of these principles at the country level. With new
laws such as the one in Madagascar being proposed increasingly regularly in countries all over
the world, things are looking up for the global future of cooperatives.