Antananarivo, August 14, 2026 — The Moris-Mada Business Connect Summit closed on August 14 in Antananarivo with an ambitious balance sheet. Over 48 hours, around 500 entrepreneurs from both islands gathered at the CCI Ivato conference centre to strengthen economic ties between Madagascar and Mauritius, turning still-limited commercial exchanges into concrete investment flows.
A High-Level Summit
Held under the patronage of Malagasy Prime Minister Mamitiana Rajaonarison, the summit brought together more than ten institutional delegations. The three organising bodies — the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Maurice-Madagascar (CCimm), the Association of African and Indian Ocean Chambers of Commerce and Industry (AIOCCI) and the Federation of Chambers of Commerce of Madagascar (FCCim) — structured a packed programme of sectoral panels and B2B meetings.
Ten Panels, Hundreds of Business Meetings
The programme covered sectors ranging from agri-food to digital, tourism, financial services and infrastructure. Organisers set a concrete objective: to produce at least 3 formalised new collaborations between companies from the two countries, in complementary sectors.
The Mauritius delegation was led by Muhammad Reza Cassam Uteem and comprised around fifty operators. On the Malagasy side, participating firms highlighted opportunities in agriculture, responsible mining and the textile sector.
A Strategic Axis for the Indian Ocean
Bilateral trade between Madagascar and Mauritius remains well below its potential. Mauritius, aspiring to become a financial services and logistics hub for East Africa, sees in Madagascar a market of 30 million growing consumers. Conversely, Madagascar looks to Mauritius as a partner to structure its exports and gain access to processing and certification expertise.
Why It Matters
This type of event embodies the south-south cooperation logic gaining traction in the Indian Ocean. Rather than waiting for European or Asian investment, the two islands are choosing to build durable intra-regional partnerships — a dynamic that could extend to the Comoros and Seychelles in future editions.
Sources: Newsmada, Le Mauricien, LinkedIn MIDSP-MADA (August 2026)