Assessment of media development in Madagascar

UNESCO's Media Development Indicators – approved in March 2008 by the Intergovernmental Council of the International Programme for the Development of Communication (IPDC) – aim to analyze the media environment. This study was carried out in 2014 by the Communication Research Center of the University of Antananarivo and with the participation of a team of national experts in order to better understand the challenges linked to media development in Madagascar.

The analysis of media development in Madagascar guides the country in the process of strengthening the governance of key democratic institutions and contributes to the development of free, independent and pluralistic media. Through this analysis of the aspect of the media landscape, the media development indicators guide the efforts of the various actors working for the development of the media, as well as the formulation of policies in this area. Although the analysis is based on international standards and good practices, the recommendations are adapted to the particularities of Madagascar following the first States General of Media and Communication which were organized by the United Nations, in particular UNIC, OHCHR, UNDP and UNESCO on 27-28 November 2014 in Antananarivo, Madagascar.

This study presents an evaluation of the development of the media in Madagascar in a context of return to the democratic functioning of institutions following the political crisis of 2009-2013 which resulted in strong political instability and economic stagnation. It is based on the UNESCO Media Development Indicators (MDI) and should constitute a tool for promoting media development.