Once nicknamed “TGV” for his breakneck style, Madagascar’s Andry Rajoelina became the world’s youngest head of state at 34 after a 2009 coup. Sixteen years on, the three-time president has fled the country amid Gen Z-led protests and a military split reminiscent of the forces that first installed him.
Rajoelina, 51, left on a French military aircraft, official and diplomatic sources said. He warned of an attempted putsch by soldiers siding with demonstrators angry over poverty, joblessness, and rolling power and water cuts. On Tuesday, an army commander said the military was taking over the nation and dissolving most institutions, while the lower house voted to impeach Rajoelina.
His rise was fueled by youth appeal. As Antananarivo mayor from 2007, the former DJ and media entrepreneur led rallies against President Marc Ravalomanana after authorities shut his TV channel in 2008. Too young to serve under the constitution, he nonetheless took power with military backing in 2009, then handed over in 2014 before returning through the ballot box in 2018 and again in 2023.
The promise of rapid change faded. GDP per capita has nearly halved since independence in 1960, World Bank data show, and three-quarters of Malagasy live in extreme poverty. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Rajoelina touted an unproven herbal “cure.” In 2022 he courted investors with tax breaks to import giraffes, zebras and elephants to boost tourism—an idea that went nowhere.
Corruption concerns mounted. Transparency International’s index ranking for Madagascar slid from 118 to 140 between 2012 and 2024. Last year a London court convicted Rajoelina’s former chief of staff for seeking bribes tied to gemstone mining rights. Opposition parties also tried to bar Rajoelina from the 2023 race over his 2014 acquisition of French citizenship, a sensitive issue in the former colony.
In a Facebook address late Monday, Rajoelina said he had moved to a safe location and vowed not to “allow Madagascar to be destroyed,” without disclosing his whereabouts. But momentum had shifted. “Whatever the outcome of this crisis, Rajoelina’s legacy is already defined,” said Ketakandriana Rafitoson, Transparency International’s global vice-chair. “His rule has left the country weaker, poorer and more unequal.”
On the streets of Antananarivo, frustration spilled over. “We gave him a chance,” said Nanou Rakoto, a 27-year-old market trader. “Life in Madagascar is so hard… We need someone who can pay attention to our problems.”