Morondava hosted the launch of Madagascar's first Peace Caravan, marking ten years of commitment by the UN Peacebuilding Fund (PBF) to conflict prevention, human rights promotion, and social cohesion strengthening. The caravan will travel through the Fund's intervention regions to promote dialogue, peaceful conflict resolution, and good governance.
Menabe region was chosen to launch this initiative due to the dynamism of its youth organizations and results achieved in gender equality, women's empowerment, and community impact. The launch featured intergenerational dialogue, inauguration of the "Your Vision of Peace for Menabe" mural, a Karavan'alina, and a peace concert.
Youth and Sports Minister Alain Désiré Rasambany, himself a former beneficiary of the PBF-supported Mahasaky project, emphasized the need to continue youth-focused actions. "Young people are not the future, they are already the present. It is essential to preserve PBF achievements and extend this commitment to build lasting peace and strengthen good governance," he stated.
According to Marie Doucey, coordinator of the PBF Technical Secretariat in Madagascar, youth engagement is a strategic priority. For ten years, the Fund has supported youth network structuring, skills development, and implementation of the Youth, Peace and Security Agenda, in line with UN Security Council Resolution 2250. Young people represent nearly 70% of Madagascar's population, a potential the PBF intends to continue supporting.
In Morondava, the National Youth, Peace and Security Coalition organized awareness activities at the Youth House, while OBS-Mada members, supported through the Landja project, continue initiatives for social cohesion and citizen oversight. An intergenerational dialogue organized by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the National Human Rights Observatory (ONDH) brought together local authorities, civil society, and youth leaders around youth participation in peacebuilding.
The PBF also highlighted results from the REAP project. In several villages of the Antimena protected area, women's committees helped reduce tensions over natural resource access while developing income-generating activities. A 2022 study notes these committees strengthened solidarity among women and their ability to voice concerns within families and communities.