Madagascar’s President Andry Rajoelina on Wednesday, October 8, 2025, invited representatives from various sectors of civil society to the presidential palace for talks aimed at easing nationwide unrest that has gripped the country since September 25.
More than 1,500 people attended the meeting, including senior church officials, university heads, students, youth organizations, business leaders, unions, medical professionals, teachers, artists, and journalists. The discussions were part of Rajoelina’s effort to regain control amid growing public discontent and widespread demonstrations.
Addressing the gathering, President Rajoelina vowed to step down if the country’s capital, Antananarivo, continues to experience power outages within the next year.
“I swear before God,” he declared. “I ask you for one year! I will succeed!”
To fulfill his promise, the president highlighted several energy projects currently underway, including the launch of a 105-megawatt thermal power plant, the construction of 100 megawatts of solar parks, and the deployment of 60 megawatts of generators.
“We will even transport [the generators] by plane if necessary, so that there will be no more outages here in Antananarivo and throughout Madagascar,” he added.
Despite the president’s appeal for dialogue, protests continued across the capital. Junior doctors staged a strike demanding improved working conditions, while members of the Gen Z movement rejected Rajoelina’s invitation to talks and called for a nationwide strike on Thursday. Several media organizations also boycotted the meeting in solidarity with the demonstrators.
