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The ICRC regional delegation in Antananarivo
25-01-2011 Overview
In January 2011, the ICRC opened a regional delegation for the Indian Ocean in Madagascar. The delegation covers four island States that share important socio-economic and cultural ties: the Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius and the Seychelles. The ICRC has been present in the Indian Ocean region since the mid-1990s. Its main humanitarian activities there are visiting persons deprived of their freedom (Comoros and Madagascar), raising awareness of international humanitarian law and providing operational and general support for the region’s four National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.
The Indian Ocean Regional Intervention Platform (PIROI), which takes action in disaster situations, covers the same countries.
Madagascar has some 20 million inhabitants. Since political unrest began to sweep the country two years ago, the ICRC has been helping the Malagasy Red Cross cope with the consequences of the violence.
The ICRC has expanded its visits to places of detention and supplemented them with medical and nutritional aid and efforts to improve sanitation. It also provides assistance for the national committee on international humanitarian law, and runs a training programme for police forces on human rights principles applicable to peace-keeping and peace-building operations.
Some 700,000 people live in the Comoros, a country that has experienced several bouts of political unrest in recent years. The ICRC has helped strengthen the capacity of the Comoros Red Crescent to cope with the internal violence. It also visits detainees in Moroni’s prison, where it has undertaken sanitation work, and runs a training programme for the country’s police forces.
About 1.2 million people live in Mauritius and some 70,000 in the Seychelles. The ICRC supports the National Red Cross Societies and the national committees on international humanitarian law of both countries.
ICRC staff (2011): 15 staff including 6 expatriates
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