THE AFRICAN COURIER. Reporting Africa and its Diaspora! The African Courier is an international magazine published in Germany to report on Africa and the Diaspora African experience. The first issue of the bimonthly magazine appeared on the newsstands on 15 February 1998. The African Courier is a communication forum for European-African political, economic and cultural exchanges, and a voice for Africa in Europe.
A delegation from Germany has travelled to Madagascar to assess the destruction caused by Tropical Cyclone Gezani and to support ongoing humanitarian relief efforts in one of the world’s poorest countries.
The visit, led by Bishop Rudolf Voderholzer of Regensburg and Monsignor Wolfgang Huber, president of the Catholic mission agency Missio Munich, comes two months after the powerful storm struck Madagascar’s east coast in February, leaving tens of thousands homeless and deepening an already severe humanitarian crisis.
The Diocese of Regensburg contributed €50,000 from its emergency disaster fund to support Missio’s relief work. According to the organisers, the funds helped provide immediate food supplies, medicine and emergency assistance to families who lost homes and livelihoods.
During their visit to Toamasina, the country’s main port city and one of the hardest-hit areas, the German delegation joined local church workers in distributing food parcels containing rice, beans and cooking oil. Aid packages are also being sent to remote villages that remain difficult to access because of damaged roads and flooding.
“What we have seen is heartbreaking,” Bishop Voderholzer said. “Many weakly built homes were simply swept away. But we were also deeply moved by the courage, faith and solidarity of the people.”
Madagascar is highly vulnerable to tropical storms and climate shocks. The island nation is hit regularly by cyclones, droughts and flooding, with the World Bank warning that climate change is intensifying weather extremes. Around three-quarters of Madagascar’s population live in extreme poverty, according to international development agencies.
Monsignor Huber said the crisis shows the importance of community-based institutions. “Where state support is often absent, church networks are reaching people in need,” he said.
Beyond emergency relief, the delegation also visited church-run social projects, including a chapel inside one of the country’s largest prisons, where children are reportedly held alongside adults. Church organisations there provide counselling, education and vocational training.
The trip also prepares for Germany’s World Mission Month in October 2026, when Catholic communities across the country will focus attention on Madagascar. Campaign themes will include access to education, human dignity, child protection and responses to climate change.
For many Malagasy families still rebuilding after Gezani, international solidarity remains urgently needed.
With missio magazin Press Release
