Water and electricity
Power cuts of up to 20 hours a day, whole neighbourhoods without running water. Only about 36% of Malagasy people have access to electricity.
The movement
A generation without leaders, without fear
Malagasy Gen Z had no party, no leader and no funding. It had phones, a just anger and remarkable discipline. Here is how it organised, what it demanded, and the symbols it chose.
01
The roots of the anger
Poverty
Around 75% of Madagascar's roughly 30 million people live below the poverty line, according to the World Bank. Youth unemployment is massive.
Corruption and impunity
A ruling clan, prestige mega-projects, enriched cronies, a captured justice system. The youth were simply asking for accountability.
Abandoned schools
Underfunded schools that rarely have electricity. Protesters demanded decent study conditions for everyone, not just leaders' children.
02
How they organised
Leaderless
No designated leader, so the regime had no one to arrest to behead the movement. That is what made it unbreakable.
Facebook and Discord
The "Gen Z Madagascar" page passed 100,000 followers in five days. Decisions were made in open, horizontal Discord servers.
Ready for a blackout
In early October, activists adopted BitChat, an offline Bluetooth messenger, in case the internet was shut down.
Citizen investigation
Using open-source intelligence (OSINT), they documented abuses, identified security officers and tracked officials' planes on Flightradar24.
The diaspora
Live streams from 13 May Square mobilised Malagasy communities in Europe and North America, and drew the world's attention.
Street and screen
Physical occupation of public squares plus live broadcasting: a hybrid mobilisation that was impossible to ignore.
03
The pirate flag with the satroka
Across the world, angry Gen Z protesters flew the straw-hat Jolly Roger from One Piece, the crew of Monkey D. Luffy, a symbol of freedom against corrupt power. Indonesia, Nepal, the Philippines, Peru, Morocco: the same flag.
In Madagascar, young people made it their own by swapping the straw hat for the satroka, the traditional hat of the Betsileo people. A global symbol with a Malagasy identity.
04
Words from the street
Miala pory Rajoelina
Get out, Rajoelina: the unofficial anthem of the protests
Mitsangana ry tanora
Rise up, youth: a patriotic song sung in chorus
Rajoelina masosopory
A parody of his 2018 presidential campaign song
"We don't want power, we want light"
A protester's words, as reported by Al Jazeera
05
What they demanded
- 1Reliable, lasting access to water and electricity
- 2An end to corruption and a transparent state
- 3Release of arrested protesters
- 4Independent investigations into the deaths and injuries
- 5Decent study conditions for all young people
- 6The resignation of President Andry Rajoelina
06
A global wave
Madagascar is part of a wave of Gen Z uprisings: Kenya (2024), Indonesia (August 2025), Nepal (September 2025, the government fell), the Philippines, Peru, Morocco (GenZ 212). But Madagascar is the first country in Africa where a Gen Z-led movement brought down the head of state.