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The former Chief of Staff of the Malagasy President was found guilty of corruption following a secret investigation carried out quickly by the National Crime Agency (« National Crime Agency » – NCA).

REMINDERS

Romy Andrianarisoa, 47, from Madagascar, and his French associate Philippe Tabuteau, 54, were indicted in August 2023 after demanding substantial sums of money in exchange for their help in entering into a joint venture. ) exclusive mining with the government of Madagascar. Tabuteau pleaded guilty in September 2023.

The two defendants attempted to solicit a bribe from Gemfields, a UK-based company specializing in ruby ​​and emerald mining, and proud of its projects to improve health, education and livelihoods of people living in communities surrounding their mines.

Romy Andrianarisoa had contacted the Gemfields company through an introducing agent, before arranging several in-person meetings to discuss potential contracts. At the 2023 meetings, she was Chief of Staff to the President of Madagascar, Andry Rajoelina, and made it clear that she had a direct line and significant influence with that country’s leaders. Tabuteau participated in the negotiations, describing himself as having no formal role within the government, but working for them “in a private and personal capacity.”

Shortly after her appointment as Chief of Staff, Romy Andrianarisoa introduced Philippe Tabuteau as her “colleague”, specifying that he would help her “to move things forward”. In March 2023, Tabuteau held a face-to-face meeting with a member of the Gemfields team during which he requested compensation for his services in exchange for “achieving milestones.” He highlighted the measures taken by himself and Andrianarisoa to ensure their actions remained secret, explaining that they would never speak on the phone or via email and would conduct conversations face-to-face or via WhatsApp only.

Andrianarisoa and Tabuteau each requested 10,000 Swiss francs as partial payment, in addition to two payments of 125,000 Swiss francs for the delivery of an “invitation to initiate collaboration” from President Rajoelina and the signing by the government of the key terms relating to the joint venture. They also tried to secure a 05% stake for their stake, which given the nature of the business could total around £4 million.

Suspicious of the intentions of both figures, Gemfields raised concerns about corruption at the NCA, which spawned an investigation using surveillance and other undercover tactics.

In meetings and conversations held over the next four months, Romy Andrianarisoa described the need for a substantial payment to ensure the continued success of the project, even if there was a change in president, and highlighted the amount that both of them should receive, as a gesture of goodwill for the project: “signing of the contract: – “Ten [milliers USD] for both of us […] ; ten per head for Philippe and me.”( “Ten [thousand USD] for both of us […] ten per capita for Philippe and myself”).

VERDICT

On August 10, 2023, the duo were arrested by NCA officers at a hotel in Victoria, London. Romy Andrianarisoa was found guilty by a jury at Southwark Crown Court on February 20, 2024. Sentencing is scheduled for March 18, 2024.

Translated from English by Jeannot Ramambazafy

Source : NCA

Iavoloha State Palace, Friday February 23, 2024. The delegation of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI, (from l’anglais Global Polio Eradication Initiative)) led by the WHO Resident Representative in Madagascar, accompanied by the UNICEF Resident Representative, paid a courtesy visit to the First Lady of the Republic of Madagascar, Mrs. Mialy R. Rajoelina.

The First Lady of the Republic of Madagascar being patron of the national vaccination campaign, the interview focused on the year of vaccination 2024 and the fight against poliomyelitis. At the end of this visit, representatives of UNICEF and WHO expressed their satisfaction with the renewed commitment of Mrs. Mialy R. Rajoelina to make this year 2024: “a year of vaccination”.

They also reaffirmed their support for this mission. “The First Lady, as godmother of vaccination, reassured us enormously of her personal commitment. And reiterated to us her desire to make this year 2024 a year of vaccination during which she will be able to send messages to encourage all mothers and fathers also to vaccinate their children and to make more efforts so that not only polio is eradicated but to May all children be protected from childhood illnesses”declared, very enthusiastically, Madame Christine Jaulmes, Resident Representative of UNICEF in Madagascar.

For his part, Dr Laurent Musango, WHO Resident Representative in Madagascar, recalled that: “It’s really interesting… This is not the first time that I have spoken with the First Lady who is the godmother of vaccination and who is making a lot of efforts to ensure that Malagasy children are vaccinated. We discussed collaboration in the fight against polio but also on other diseases so that 2024 is a year of vaccination so as not to leave anyone behind, so that all children are vaccinated and that we forget the epidemics of polio, measles, and many other diseases. She is really well committed and we appreciate a lot. On the partner side, we are also committed to giving our contribution and our technical and financial support.”

What is Polyomyelitis?

What is the Global Polio Eradication Initiative?

It is a public-private partnership whose objective is to eliminate this disease from the face of the planet.

After the eradication of smallpox in 1977, the World Health Organization (WHO), buoyed by its success, passed a resolution to eradicate polio and created e the GPEI in 1988, building on the work launched in 1985 by ROTARY INTERNATIONAL. At that time, polio was paralyzing more than 1,000 children every day across 125 countries. Since then, by vaccinating 3 billion children since its launch, the GPEI partnership has enabled a reduction of more than 99% in the number of cases observed worldwide.

Today, wild poliovirus is only endemic in two countries, Afghanistan and Pakistan. With sufficient investments, the GPEI could enable the definitive interruption of the transmission of the virus by the end of 2023, allowing certification of its eradication at the end of 2026. The infrastructure and personnel mobilized for surveillance of the appearance of polio cases and vaccination campaigns also play a crucial role in other areas of public health, such as routine vaccinations or the immediate response to polio ™other health emergencies such as the Covid-19 pandemic.

Jeannot Ramambazafy

Main source: FITIA Association

When Philippe Tabuteau pleaded guilty, he no longer needed to stand trial. However, it is certain that his sentence will be reduced because of Romy Andrianarisoa who insisted on saying that he is innocent.

While waiting for the verdict to be issued by the Judge regarding the punishment (“Judge of sentences”), on March 18, 2024, here are two statements from British dignitaries authorized to speak, following the judgment issued on February 20, 2024, in the SCC court (« Southwark Crown Court ») -See here-.

The Queen of Valamaty novelists is on Facebook again, because of her deep hatred for President Rajoelina. There is no need to write his name here, he will know himself.

Statement from Andy KellyHead of the NCA’s International Corruption Unit (« National Crime Agency » or National Crime Agency):

« This study demonstrates the ability of the ICU (« International Corruption Unit » or International Anti-Corruption Bureau) by investing in cooperation in the field of Industry and the fight against disrespect for the Government. We are very grateful to the Gemfields company for informing us of the incident they received in this case and their willingness to continue working with us during the investigation to obtain a good and clear result that cannot be criticized.

Statement by Thomas Shorta CPS fraud attorney (« Crown Prosecution Service »), said:

Romy Andrianarisoa is a corrupt public servant who chose to get rich through his high position in the public service. The CPS provided legal advice to the NCA during the investigation and prosecution to enable it to present a full and comprehensive case before the court. The fact that the Gemfields company has given new evidence to the authorities, regarding these two people to the authorities, is to protect their company and other companies as well, in the presence of the fraudsters. These two people are too greedy and shameless.

It should be remembered here that Romy Andrianarisoa asked for a lot of money from the CEO of Gemfields.

Translated from English by Jeannot Ramambazafy

Addis Ababa, Sunday, February 18, 2024. On the sidelines of the last day of the 37th Ordinary Meeting for African Heads of State and Government gathered within the African Union (AU), we met again with Mrs. Victoria Kwakwa , President Andry Rajoelina,

Again, I said, because the Malagasy President and Mrs. Victoria Kwakwa met three times:

The first was in Iavoloha, Antananarivo, Madagascar, on December 6, 2022;

the second in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania, on July 26, 2023,

and the third was in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on February 18.

Who is Miss Victoria Kwakwa? Find out and you will know, dear reader, the real content of Madagascar.

STEM is a continuation of that “science, technology, engineering, and mathematics”. That is: Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. These are the basic courses that lead to development for a country, even economic development for the entire African continent, if the students, whether male or female, will study it.

Victoria Kwakwa, a Ghanaian, joined the World Bank in 1989. Young Executive (“young executive”) him at that time. Have a degree « licence » in Economics and Statistics from the University of Ghana, and a B.S « maîtrise » and a degree in economics from Queen’s University (Ontario, Canada). Currently, he is the Vice President of the World Bank for the Eastern and Southern regions of Africa.

Prior to her appointment to this position on July 1, 2022, Ms. Kwakwa was the Vice President of Strategic Operations, working closely with the Chief Operating Officer and other government agencies and institutions. various governments in priority activities to improve the performance and impact of the World Bank’s programs.

From April 2016 to August 2021, he was the World Bank’s Vice President for East Asia and the Pacific, and led the Bank’s work in 23 countries with a profile (« profil ») very different: in a country on the way to a high-level economy; there are middle-income countries that have good fundamentals and low-income countries that need quick recovery.

But Victoria Kwakwa also has extensive experience in Africa, which she gained in Nigeria, the country where she led the economic work of the World Bank between 2001 and 2006, and also in Rwanda, where she was the Head†World Bank from 2007 to 2009.

Ms. Kwakwa brings in-depth knowledge of the Bank’s operations and strong experience in debt-related issues and resilience in the economic environment (“Marco-economic resilience”), reforming economic competitiveness and growth and financial diversification. He knows how to put each person at the center of his work, listen to the beneficiaries and focus on getting good results for the benefit of the client country and its people.

His professional work covers countless areas in the world of development: rural development, infrastructure financing, climate change mitigation and sustainability, strengthening people’s wealth. and urban development. Victoria Kwakwa has established lasting partnerships with the private sector, civil society and international actors and demonstrated her ability to mobilize diverse stakeholders around common interests.

If you cancel, you have She is an economist and development expert with more than 30 years of experience. She currently leads the World Bank’s operations in 26 countries. Victoria Kwakwa oversees 313 exchange-traded funds with a total capitalization of $58 billion, and oversees extensive programs in advanced analytics, technical assistance and strategic advice. His vision and vision is that Africa should be a stable region, united and resilient in the face of various problems, with a dynamic economy and a prosperous society, where all citizens, especially women, can , children and young people, enjoy equal benefits.

Under the leadership of Victoria Kwakwa, the World Bank provides significant support to countries facing complex and multifaceted challenges, such as the Covid-19 crisis, climate change and disruption. , the increase in the cost of living caused by the increase in food and energy prices, and the increase in debt. Ms. Kwakwa’s priorities are to promote private sector employment, economic transformation, human capital development (“Human capital”), strengthening sustainability in the face of climate change, improving production in the agricultural sector and food security, improving the way to obtain minimum infrastructure needed by the people… All these problematic areas are related to the reduction of various vulnerabilities caused by chaos and conflict. Promotion of gender equality and regional integration should be prioritized (“Regional integration”).

Going back to the meeting between President Rajoelina and Mrs. Kwakwa in Addis-Ababa, on February 18, 2024, the Vice President of the World Bank said:

It is always a pleasure to meet the President of the Malagasy Republic, Andry Rajoelina. I congratulate him on being able to seek a second term. They talked about efforts to accelerate the implementation of the use of growing deposits, progress in innovation, especially in the energy sector, and ways to support the development of hydropower. The World Bank is ready to strengthen cooperation with Madagascar, for the benefit of all citizens..

Malagasy President Andry Rajoelina said:

« I made this our third meeting as a priority here in Addis Ababa, to look at the cooperation together and to strengthen it. The international bank’s budget for the projects they will work with us now reaches more than 4 billion dollars. For the first time in the cooperation, they have given Madagascar a lot of confidence like that and they are fully ready to be by our side and provide technical support as well.

Jeannot RAMAMBAZAFY

Antananarivo, February 19, 2024

Souk Madinat Jumeirah in Dubai, Tuesday February 13, 2024

“Your Highnesses, Dear Leaders, Heads of State and Government, Dear Participants, Ladies and Gentlemen.

I would like, first of all, to express my warm thanks to His Excellency, Mr. Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates, for the hospitality that was reserved © to my delegation and myself.

The United Arab Emirates, through Dubai, today embody a model of global economic development. The transformation of a desert into a global economic metropolis, in just a few decades, proves that with a vision and the strength of work, we can transform a dream into reality. This embodies an exemplary success, a source of universal inspiration.

Bringing together 190 countries, Dubai brings together the world today, through this World Summit of Governments, to discuss transformation and acceleration of development at the global level. And it is with pride that I am here, to represent Madagascar, my country.

This Summit has become an essential space to discuss priorities and future visions; to promote international cooperation, by exchanging best practices, with the aim of finding effective solutions to better serve Humanity.

This is why Madagascar’s participation in this Summit is essential because it gives us the opportunity to share our vision in order to achieve our common objectives. The world is changing with technological advances. It is appropriate for each country to promote its assets to harmonize sustainable development.

Regarding Madagascar, the largest island on the African continent with its 5,000 kilometers of coastline, positions itself as a bridge between Africa, Asia, the Middle East and the entire region. ©Ocean-Indian region, because you should know that today we are home to 05% of the world’s biodiversity. The country’s wealth is just waiting to be exploited to achieve the development that has been long awaited for decades.

Faced with the challenges encountered, and in view of catching up with the development delay accumulated over 60 years, Madagascar has focused on several essential sectors. With 80% of its population living in rural areas, agriculture is one of our priority sectors. Rice being the basis of the diet of the Malagasy population, despite production of nearly 4 million tonnes annually, we are still forced to import it.

The objective that we have set for ourselves is to once again become the rice basket of the Indian Ocean in the years to come. To achieve this objective, accessibility to land is an essential condition for being able to develop sustainable agriculture.

Indeed, the population encounters many land problems, and this does not encourage them to intensify production. As you know, in the beginning, even God created the heavens, the earth and men. And this is why we have a duty to promote this wealth. This is the very essence of our mission. Cultivate and exploit the land, thus feeding people. This is why we have prioritized the distribution of more than 2 million land certificates, which will allow more than 36% of Malagasy families to own their land. Because the earth is sacred, it is even our identity.

In addition to these land challenges, we are going to build fertilizer production factories and we are going to popularize affordable seeds, to make inputs accessible in order to increase production yield per hectare.

Furthermore, we will also develop agriculture and agribusiness on a large scale, by increasing the cultivable areas by 100,000 hectares, which will make it possible to achieve food self-sufficiency. I am convinced that, in the coming years, Madagascar will become the rice breadbasket of the Indian Ocean.

The energy sector is also one of the essential pillars of development. Indeed, our energy production currently comes mainly from thermal groups. The high cost of the kilowatt/hour makes energy inaccessible and slows down development because only 23% of the population has access to energy.

We are therefore going to accelerate the energy transition in Madagascar, by installing, in the coming months, 60 solar parks in 119 districts across the island. This is a big step towards green, renewable and clean energy.

The majority of African populations and 75% of Malagasy families do not have access to domestic electricity and still light with candles or kerosene. Our challenge is therefore to provide access to electricity to these families. For this, we have launched a national plan for the massive distribution of solar kits, through a program that we have called “Hazavana ho anao” or light for all or for each household which we will therefore distribute in nearly 4 million households which will save between 2 and 4 dollars per month for each household.

This would constitute nearly $960 million in savings in 5 years, thus leading to an improvement in the daily lives of each family, leading to economic growth for the country. This unprecedented program of providing lighting in every household to illuminate the entire country will obviously bring development.

In the field of health, according to the World Bank: 400 million people around the world do not have access to health services, especially the most basic ones. Particularly in West and sub-Saharan Africa, 93% of the population cannot afford medical care or live too far from a hospital to have access to treatment. .

However, the right to health is a minimum universal right for everyone. The problem of lack of hospital infrastructure has caused many people to lose their lives, even for the mildest illnesses. Hospitals are far away, roads do not allow access to health centers. Madagascar has therefore introduced considerable structural reforms over the last 5 years.

Do you know that a large country like Madagascar, since our Independence in 1960, has only 18 hospital and university centers for a population of 28 million inhabitants.

This is how, since the start of my mandate in 2019, we have built 30 hospitals following international standards in just 5 years. Close to the population, these hospitals are equipped with an operating theater and new cutting-edge technologies such as scanners. In addition, 110 basic health centers have been built across 119 districts throughout the country.

I am convinced that it is a healthy and healthy population that can make a contribution to the development of the nation.

In the field of education, as you know, in Africa as in Madagascar, several thousand children still walk for several hours to reach their school or a place of education, sometimes even under the trees and study without a roof and without basic equipment such as tables and benches.

This is why we took on the challenge of building 4,198 classrooms to educate more than 200,000 students in just 5 years. This is a record in Madagascar which will shine on the African continent. Manuals, educational books and IT tools were distributed to all these schools. School canteens have also been set up.

We have built universities and, in the next 5 years, we will focus on setting up a professional training program adapted to young people and the needs of the labor market. As on the African continent, 75% of the Malagasy population is young. This is a strength and an advantage that we must exploit to the fullest.

It is in this spirit that the general policy of the Malagasy state is aimed at young people, through training, our objective being that each citizen must be useful and an actor of disaster. development and not a burden on his family and that he does not become a burden on his community and on the country.

We are therefore going to invest massively in professional training to increase the skills of our young people and reduce the unemployment rate.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

At the end of my speech, in this same register, it is with satisfaction that we come to realize cooperation projects with the United Arab Emirates, in the field of digitalization, through the ” Digital School” and “Coders Initiative” which will train more than a million young people in new technologies.

Given that young Malagasy people are talented and master these tools, these programs will promote access to the labor market and allow the absorption of unemployment and the unemployment rate.

With the United Arab Emirates, we have the confidence of having a partner with quality know-how and experience to support Madagascar towards rapid and sustainable development. The future comes down to preparing our future generations to face challenges with innovative technological weapons that will shape the world of tomorrow.

The hope of every generation rests in our hands, we the Leaders of today. Our duty is to support them for a better future.

Long live cooperation between world governments! May the Leaders that we are carry the transformation of today and the development of tomorrow!

May God bless our Nations.

Thank you for your kind attention »./.

Andry RAJOELINA

President of the Republic of Madagascar

Listening transcription: Jeannot RAMAMBAZAFY

On the sidelines of the World Government Summit, which is being held in Dubai, from February 12 to 14, 2024, President Andry Rajoelina and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Rasata Rafaravavitafika, have encountered Son Excellence Cheikh Shakhboot Nahyan Al Nahyan.

If, for the President of Madagascar, it was a second meeting, after the one which took place in December 2023, within the framework of COP 28, still in Dubai, for the young and newly appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs , this is the first time she met her Emirati counterpart.

So what was the journey of this 34-year-old young man, currently a member of the Cabinet and Minister of State at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs? from the Emirates?

His Excellency Sheikh Shakhboot Nahyan Al Nahyan has been appointed Minister of State in the Federal Government’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, following a cabinet reshuffle in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in February 2021.

His Excellency Sheikh Shakhboot Nahyan Al Nahyan has been the UAE Ambassador to Saudi Arabia since 2017. He has played a vital role in promoting and developing mutual relations, strengthening bilateral cooperation in various fields and supporting common interests of the people of the two brotherly countries. He served at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 2013-2014.

In 2015-2016, he served as President of the UAE Equestrian Federation. Previously, he worked at the « Standard Chartered Bank » in Abu Dhabi and « Mubadala Investment Company » in 2012 and completed an internship at the newspaper « The National » in 2011.

His Excellency Sheikh Shakhboot Nahyan Al Nahyan holds a postgraduate diploma in UAE Diplomacy and International Relations from the Emirates Diplomatic Academy in 2017. He enrolled at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in 2015 -2016 and also obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Applied Media from Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT), Abu Dhabi in 2012.

In addition to his mother tongue, Arabic, he speaks English and French fluently. Son Excellence Cheikh Shakhboot Nahyan Al Nahyan loves horseback riding, traveling and reading.

Jeannot Ramambazafy