Judging by a call for applications launched yesterday by the FFKM, the national consultation is still in its preparatory phase. Any delay risks having repercussions on the electoral schedule.
Time is running out. This expression could apply to the Council of Christian Churches of Madagascar (FFKM) regarding the national consultation. Judging by a call for applications dated September 18 and published yesterday, the process is still in the preparatory phase.
“We are fully in the preparations for the implementation of the consultation for the Refoundation of Madagascar (…),” states this call for applications. It is addressed to “children of the Churches [members of the FFKM]” for the recruitment of debate moderators, logistics officers, and session secretaries for the discussions organized at different levels of the national consultation. The deadline for submitting applications to the offices of each Church in the country is set for September 23. The ecclesiastical institution also specifies that the recruited persons will have to undergo training before diving into the deep end.
In reaction to this call for applications, Johasy Éléonore, from the “Tsara Tahafina” party, questions the place of people belonging to denominations or religions other than those represented within the FFKM. Other observers note that the Churches seem to be taking their time in conducting the national consultation. Nearly a month after the ecumenical service marking the official launch of the operational phase of the process, organized in Andohatapenaka on August 25, things are still not moving on the ground.
During that event, it was announced that training for debate facilitators at the district, commune, and fokontany levels would be held from September 1 to 11. The actual consultation was then supposed to begin in the fokontany starting September 14.
Starting from September 14, the calendar established by the Churches provided for the start of consultations at the commune level on October 5, then in the districts on October 26, and in the regions on November 16. The national consultation itself is scheduled for March 2027. The FFKM also indicates that the resolutions will not be known until after May 2027. A schedule that is already proving tight with regard to the electoral deadlines inscribed in the Republic’s Refoundation Program, submitted to the Southern African Development Community (SADC) on February 28.
In this document, the State plans to hold a constitutional referendum or a constituent election between May and July 2027, then the organization of the presidential election before the end of the same year. While traveling in Antsirabe on Saturday, Colonel Michaël Randrianirina, Head of State, reaffirmed the objective of holding elections next year. However, he did not specify which ones.
Unless there is a change in approach, compliance with the planned electoral deadlines, particularly that relating to the adoption of a new Constitution, depends on the outcome of the national consultation. The resolutions of the latter should, in fact, serve as a reference for the drafting of the fundamental law project(s) that will be submitted to the citizens’ vote.
The Head of State has already taken the lead by organizing consultations on the organization of elections. However, it is likely that the national consultation, established as a “sovereign” body, will also lead to recommendations aimed at reforming the legal and institutional framework of the polls. Hence the importance of respecting the schedule planned for holding the debates.
However, the FFKM seems to be taking its time and taking some liberties with its schedule. Every day or week of delay risks compromising the holding of the elections necessary for the return to constitutional order before the end of 2027.
Captured & Published at: 2026-09-22 05:54:11 (Madagascar Local Time EAT)
Original Source: https://www.lexpress.mg/2026/09/concertation-nationale-le-ffkm-traine.html