After several weeks of waiting, the national consultation process is entering a more concrete phase. The Prime Minister and the FFKM are beginning to clarify the first steps of a project designed to prepare institutional refoundation.
The process is becoming clearer. After a long period of waiting around the national consultation, leaders are starting to provide indications on its launch. Yesterday, at the State Palace of Mahazoarivo, the Technical Committee in charge of consultation, under the leadership of Mamitiana Rajaonarison, Prime Minister, held its first meeting.
This meeting is presented as a first operational step of the national consultation. According to the Prime Minister's explanations, following yesterday's meeting, the Committee ensures follow-up of the consultation in connection with the Ecumenical Council of Christian Churches of Madagascar (FFKM), notably respecting its calendar and various stages.
Still according to Mamitiana Rajaonarison, the Committee transmits to him the conclusions from the national consultation "and subsequently ensures their implementation by the government within the framework of Refoundation." It brings together representatives of young people from each province, civil society, traditional authorities, the private sector, and religious entities. In parallel, the FFKM has also begun to clarify its framework.
Yesterday afternoon, the Ecumenical Council published, on its Facebook page, an invitation to an ecumenical service intended to inaugurate the headquarters from which it will lead the consultation. The ceremony will also be an opportunity to present the national coordinator and the various planned stages of the process. A source close to the matter indicates that all stakeholders of the national consultation must hold a meeting today, as a prelude to the event planned for Tuesday.
This preliminary meeting should also allow the national coordinator to be presented to the various stakeholders responsible for organizing and conducting the consultation. Unless there are changes, Tuesday's ecumenical service should thus mark the effective launch of the process. A step that occurs, however, with nearly a month's delay compared to the initial calendar announced by the FFKM on June 21.
Tight Schedule
The objective displayed by the FFKM on June 21 was notably to start grassroots consultations at the fokontany level starting in August, before progressively raising proposals to the national level. This delay occurs while the calendar already constitutes a constraint for the Refoundation process.
The Refoundation timeline indeed provides for a first electoral deadline between May and July 2027. This should be a referendum or constitutional election, depending on the option chosen. However, the national consultation must notably contribute to bringing out the constitutional project or projects that will then be submitted to a popular vote. Its calendar is therefore closely linked to that of Refoundation, planned over a twenty-four month period starting from January.
Any further delay could ultimately weigh on the electoral deadlines planned before the end of 2027. In addition to the referendum or constitutional election, a presidential election must also be organized. Upon his return from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) summit on Tuesday, Colonel Michaël Randrianirina, Head of State, affirmed that elections would take place in 2027.
The occupant of Iavoloha also indicated that the Independent National Electoral Commission (Ceni) would be ready to organize elections from July 2027, once the electoral roll overhaul is completed. He also provided details on the political consultations he is currently conducting. According to his explanations, these support a similar initiative by the Ceni to reach consensus on electoral governance.
The stated objective is to move toward elections and avoid an extension of the transition. This initiative, conducted in parallel with the national consultation, could allow discussions on elections to be at least partially separated from those on drafting the new Constitution.
This distinction could prove decisive given the schedule. While the FFKM and the Technical Committee must now launch the national consultation, the Ceni can, for its part, continue work related to the electoral process. A parallel organization aimed at limiting the effects of the delay in consultation on other Refoundation deadlines.