Internet & Online Safety · Madagascar
Online safety & content laws in Madagascar (2026)
Madagascar shaded by its internet & online safety status
Madagascar's online regulatory landscape is fragmented, relying primarily on a 2014 cybercrime law (amended 2016) that criminalises certain online content — including defamation of public officials — plus a 2014 data-protection law. There is no comprehensive online-safety or platform-accountability regime comparable to the EU Digital Services Act or UK Online Safety Act, and no specific age-verification or platform-liability framework for user-generated content beyond broad ISP/operator obligations in the cybercrime law.
Key points
Law No. 2014-006 (enacted July 2014, amended by Law No. 2016-031 in September 2016) criminalises illegal system access, data interference, illegal interception, computer fraud, and — controversially — online insult or defamation of state officials, carrying fines and up to 5 years imprisonment. RSF and IFEX have criticised the vague definition of 'insult' as enabling abuse.
Chapter III of Law No. 2014-006 (Articles 26–41) establishes duties and liability for network operators and electronic-communications service providers, requiring cooperation with authorities — but there is no modern platform-liability safe-harbour or content-moderation mandate akin to DSA Article 16-17 obligations.
Law No. 2014-038 on the Protection of Personal Data provides a general personal-data framework. The supervisory authority, CMIL (Commission Malagasy sur l'Informatique et des Libertés), was formally constituted by Decree No. 2023-1541 of December 2023 but remains only partially operational as of 2025.
Madagascar ratified the African Union Convention on Cyber Security and Personal Data Protection (Malabo Convention) via Law No. 2024-004, adopted by both chambers in June 2024 and confirmed constitutional on 10 July 2024 — signalling intent to align with the continental cybersecurity and data-protection framework.
The Autorité de Régulation des Technologies de Communication (ARTEC), established under Law No. 2005-023, licenses operators and approves devices but has no specific online-platform content-moderation mandate. ARTEC regulates access-level infrastructure rather than application-layer safety.
Freedom House (2025) and the US State Department (2023 Human Rights Report) note that social media users have faced unjustified arrests under the cybercrime law and that journalists practice self-censorship. A 2024 internet-tariff increase also raised expression-freedom concerns around legislative elections. No blanket internet shutdowns or systematic content blocking have been documented.
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