Two major decisions concerning Malagasy identity were made this week. These involve the use of Malagasy in official letters and administrative correspondence. Deputies showed courage in adopting this law, despite memories of the painful failure of excessive Malagachization in education. An entire generation was sacrificed on the altar of misplaced patriotism. However, officials were quick to clarify that these are two completely different matters. Using one's mother tongue in children's education is, moreover, recommended everywhere else. In several countries, including African ones, this is already the case. Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya and the Democratic Republic of Congo use Swahili as their official language. In other words, at least 262 million people speak this language in that part of Africa. In terms of trade, that means as many consumers. This explains that. Mandarin is spoken by 1.4 billion people and as many consumers on the international market. This is why Mandarin is experiencing international expansion today, given China's importance in trade and its technological development. India, the world's most populous country with 1.6 billion people, half speaking Hindi and the other English, is in the same situation. This is not our case. We are 32 million speaking Malagasy and even neighboring COI countries do not speak it. Identity diplomacy has had its day in supplementing wallet diplomacy. Other obstacles stand in the way of giving Malagasy its rightful place, whose contours remain to be defined. The other decision that marked the week is the government's decision to encourage the population to dress Malagasy. Here too, it is a cultural identity that varies from region to region. But the majority of Malagasy already dress in traditional outfits like Africans wearing boubou, kaftan, kita, kangaroo and gomesi at international meetings. Lately, traditional silk outfits are omnipresent at various ceremonies. Except they are not within everyone's means. Many resign themselves to the "patron n'omby" look with a felt hat and wrapped in three or four malabary with countless pockets. The two decisions are not reprehensible in themselves, except that, for now, the population has other fish to fry with insecurity, rising prices with the application of the finance law, power cuts that remain unchanged. Between appearances, this is work of... long-winded effort.