Madagascar: Welcome to Ankadibe
Medair’s work in Madagascar is exemplified in the positive changes seen in a remote village.
Four hours of travel in a dugout canoe is the only way to reach the remarkable village of Ankadibe. It’s a journey the Medair team has taken many times. Northeastern Madagascar is dotted with hundreds of remote, flood- and cyclone-prone villages like Ankadibe, communities with limited access to safe water, sanitation, or hygiene (WASH).
In the past, seasonal cyclones have repeatedly devastated Ankadibe, destroying homes, killing livestock, and causing extensive flooding that contaminated their water and led to diarrhoeal disease
“During Cyclone Gafilo, the water rose to 1.2 metres,” said Village Chief Jean Chretien. “We were scared and had to run to higher ground, but we had no shelter to protect us from the rain. Women with their babies on their backs were completely soaked by the heavy rains.”
For the last three years, Medair has worked with Ankadibe to help them break free of their vicious cycle of devastation and rebuilding. Together, we have built 20 water pumps, constructed latrines, and promoted better hygiene. “Before, we used to draw water from a well or go to the river, but there was a lot of sickness, mostly diarrhoea,” said 28-year-old village resident, Suzaline. “Since we have these pumps, we have no more diarrhoea.”
Children attend a Medair puppet show that teaches them about the importance of good hygiene.
From the first moment we started working in Ankadibe, residents have been highly motivated to reduce their risks from future cyclones. They have eagerly learned new skills, formed committees, and taken ownership of their new infrastructure.
“We have seen this village participate 100 percent in the work of Medair,” said Célestin, a local Medair staff. “Everyone is motivated to work in order to see their village advance. When a problem arises or a decision needs to be made, the village chief calls together the village association to discuss and find a solution together.”
This is how Medair aims to work throughout Madagascar: supporting communities who take the initiative to help themselves. Medair’s work in Madagascar is made possible by the generous support of the E.C. Directorate-General for Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and private donors.
“I was very impressed during this second visit to Ankadibe: I had the feeling everything had been transmitted,” said Joseph Ralaivo, evaluation consultant for ICPM, a coordination platform for NGOs in Madagascar. “I have rarely seen so many good results before. I think it’s because of Medair’s values, which correspond so well with the values of the village residents.”
Ankadibe residents work with Medair staff to build latrines.
Medair has worked in Ankadibe to help encourage the community to develop disaster risk reduction (DRR) strategies so that residents will be well-prepared for the day when another cyclone hits their village. We have held puppet shows to help bring DRR messages to children, while also promoting DRR through a mobile cinema outreach. We also ran an enlightening village-wide cyclone simulation, so that the community could learn how to react in the event of a cyclone alert. We were able to film the village’s actions during the simulation and then show the film to many other rural villages to help them develop their own DRR strategies as well.
In many small villages like Ankadibe, cyclones cause extensive damage to people’s homes. For this reason, Medair has begun working to teach people how to reinforce their homes and/or build homes in different ways so that they will be better able to withstand the damage caused by cyclones.
Ankadibe’s cyclone shelter has space for 130 residents to take refuge during a storm.
In Ankadibe, the community wanted a large cyclone shelter closer to home so that residents would have safe refuge during a storm. Medair worked closely with Ankadibe to support them in making this dream a reality for them. “We brought in materials like sand, wood, and stones,” said Pierre Malaza, President of ‘TOKY,’ Ankadibe’s new Cyclone Shelter Association. “It was a lot of work, but it was easy for us because we were really motivated and the villagers worked joyfully.”
When the shelter was completed, the village welcomed our team to a celebratory feast to inaugurate the new shelter, a hand-washing facility, and two elevated water pumps. Pierre beamed with pride as he gave us a tour of the shelter, showing us space for 130 people, latrines, showers, and a store-room for rice which every resident is expected to help stock.
“We are very proud of our cyclone shelter,” said Pierre. “The shelter brings us hope that we will be protected in case of cyclone or flood. But the shelter also gives us other advantages all year, as some money will be raised from its rental to help develop the village, and as a place for us to meet.”
At the inaugural feast, Jean, the village chief stood up and spoke to everyone gathered there. “Before, it was a dream, now it’s reality,” he said. “I am so happy to have this cyclone shelter in our village, plus the water pumps and the latrines. We will ensure the care and maintenance of infrastructure. If you broke open our hearts today, you would see written inside: ‘We are happy!’”
In Ankadibe, once-vulnerable people have taken significant steps to improving their living conditions, steps that allow them to look toward a safer and brighter future. “We thank God that Medair is working in our village and partnering with us,” said Pierre. “Although we will be sad to see you go, we are now ready to face a cyclone with confidence and we thank you.”
“Welcome to Ankadibe” is one of the many fascinating stories of lives changed and life transformed that appear in Medair’s new 2010 Annual Report. Interested in reading more? Click here to read an online version of the Annual Report.
Medair is continuing to support the village of Ankadibe, while also working in many other flood- and cyclone-prone villages in northeast Madagascar. We provide support to dynamic communities that are committed to seeing positive change happen in their villages.
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Medair’s Madagascar programme is supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, the E.C. Directorate-General for Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection, the United States Agency for International Development, the World Food Programme, and private donors.
This web feature was produced with resources gathered by Medair field and headquarters staff. The views expressed herein are those solely of Medair and should not be taken, in any way, to reflect the official opinion of any other organisation.
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