Madagascar Groups Seek Closer Jewish Ties

Madagascar is the home of Kulanu’s new correspondent, Raherimasoandro Andriamamonjy. Nicknamed Hery, he is a one-man tour de force for Judaism and Israel in his country.

Hery’s initial visit to Israel was in 1991. In 1992, he founded the “Club Shalom Madagascar,” of which he remains the president. The group’s mission, according to Hery, is to serve as an “interface or a trait d’union between Madagascar and Israel,” especially “to favor the cultural ties with the Malagasy people and the Israeli people.”

The group is made up of former interns who attended education programs in Israel. Many of those programs were through MASHAV-Israel and mostly geared to agricultural studies.