Madagascar is the 4th largest island in the world, with a surface area of 587 044 km². Bordered to the west by the Mozambique canal, the closest point to the Mozambican coast is only 400 km away. The population was estimated at 22 million in 2012. Madagascar is rich in diverse and varied resources.

During the colonial period, insurance activities in Madagascar were governed by the French Law of 13 July 1930 and in 1960 motor insurance was made compulsory in accordance with Ordinance No. 60-162 of 3 October 1960. In 1999, the Insurance Code of Madagascar was adopted by the National Assembly and published in the official gazette under law No. 93-013 of 2 August 1999. It enabled the liberalisation of the insurance sector that had been nationalised in June 1975. It is worth noting that the insurance code of Madagascar has several similarities with the CIMA Code.

In accordance with Decree No. 2001-1121 of 28 December 2001 on legal and financial regimes of insurance companies, the minimum required capital is: Category 18 (welfare associations): Ar100 million; Category 1 to 18 (general insurance companies): Ar600 million; Category 20 to 24 (life and annuity): Ar1 billion.

The market presently has five insurance companies of which two are state-owned: ARO with a 55% market share and Ny Havana with a 21% market share. There are two foreign companies: Allianz (8% market share) and SAHAM Assurances (7% market share) as well as la Mutuelle d'Assurance Malagasy – MAMA (9% market share). A request for a licence to operate by a 6th company is currently being examined. The market has 22 insurance intermediaries, five brokers and 17 general agents. In 2013, the market recorded a premium income of MGA 154.41 billion compared to MGA 135.65 billion in 2012 representing a 13.83% increase.

The Insurance Supervisory Service is working with the Committee of Insurance Companies to review the insurance code, especially regulation relating to fronting, micro insurance, reinsurance and the institution of compulsory insurance such as domiciliation of transport insurance and the revision of taxes on insurance operations to improve the penetration rate.