Long Term Food Security & Resilience in Madagascar

Project Details

Project Locations: Anosy and Androy regions

Timeframe: 2024 – 2029

Donor: USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance

Partners: Village Enterprise, Land O'Lakes Venture 37, Cornell University, Youth First, Sehatra Ampandrosoana Haingana ny Ivom-paritra (SAHI)

Project Overview

CRS currently leads the Harea (Malagasy for abundance) Resilience Food Security Activity designed to sustainably enhance productive livelihoods of more than 54,000 poor and marginalized households in southern Madagascar. Harea deploys a set of sequenced interventions to help households improve their capacities to generate and manage income, reduce exposure to risks (climatic and otherwise) and their ability to recover from disasters, climate shocks and economic vulnerability. These interventions, referred to in combination as a poverty graduation approach, is implemented in close partnership with local partners Youth First and SAHI with technical assistance provided by Village Enterprise, Land O’ Lakes Venture 37 and Cornell University.

Prior to Harea, CRS Madagascar implemented Maharo ("capable to protect or defend" in Antandroy), a comprehensive food and nutrition security program designed to prevent and reduce acute food insecurity among the most vulnerable people, households and communities in Androy and Atsimo Andrefana for five years (2019- 2024). Maharo was funded by the Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

Maharo built on multi-sectoral food and nutrition security projects implemented by CRS in the south of Madagascar since 2008, in collaboration with the Government of Madagascar's technical and administrative services, local and international developmental organizations and Catholic Church partners.

• The outcomes of the Maharo program included: Communities and the most vulnerable households and individuals supported by inclusive and effective social services and safety nets;
• The nutritional status of pregnant and lactating women, adolescents (particularly girls) and children under five improved;
• Extremely poor and vulnerable households' and women, youth and people with disabilities within those households have more resilient livelihoods;
• Vulnerable households, communities and institutions improved their resilience to disasters, shocks and climate-related stresses.

Key Areas of Intervention

• Maternal and Child Health
• Nutrition
• Agriculture
• Livelihoods
• Natural Resources Management
• Disaster and Risk Reduction
• SafetyNet
• Governance
• Social Inclusion
• Gender and Youth

CRS in Madagascar

CRS began working in Madagascar in 1962 to provide a life-saving response to emergencies and to contribute to ending chronic poverty and injustice through innovative development programs. CRS has since been working in Madagascar in emergency response and recovery, agriculture, health and nutrition, microfinance, education, governance and water, sanitation and hygiene. CRS Madagascar's main partners are the Catholic Church and local faith-based organizations.