Madagascar: Humanitarian Snapshot (May to September 2025)

OVERVIEW

The humanitarian situation in Madagascar is rapidly deteriorating. The combination of climate shocks, crop pests, locust attacks, and disease outbreaks has created a multi-layered humanitarian crisis, threatening both lives and livelihoods.

FOOD SECURITY

Food insecurity in the Grand Sud is worsening due to successive shocks such as drought, floods, and locust infestations. About 1.2 million people (14 per cent of the analysed population) face food insecurity. As of mid-2025, 7 of 11 districts are experiencing crisis levels of food insecurity (IPC 3), with 29,000 people in emergency levels (IPC 4). Projections indicate further deterioration by early 2026, with 110,000 people in IPC 4 and 9 districts in IPC 3 where such levels were not observed in 2024. In the Grand Sud-Est, 590,000 people could fall into IPC 3 by early 2026. Locust infestations remain a major threat to crops despite spraying more than 300,000 hectares in 2024–2025.

MALNUTRITION

Acute malnutrition is also surging. Nearly 558,000 children under five are projected to be acutely malnourished in 2025, a 56 per cent increase from 2024. This includes 155,600 with Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM), an 87 per cent increase. Amboasary and Ikongo towns face particularly severe conditions, with Ikongo expected to reach critical malnutrition levels (IPC 4).

MALARIA OUTBREAK

A malaria outbreak in Ikongo has compounded the crisis, with over 45,200 suspected cases reported by July 2025. Poor sanitation and unsafe coping practices during the rice harvest are fuelling transmission. The outbreak is further aggravating malnutrition in Ikongo and neighbouring districts as children who contract malaria often go without food for several days if treatment is delayed. Response efforts, led by the Government, include treatment and surveillance, provision of medicines and nutritional supplies for children, and logistics support to deliver life-saving assistance.