The United States welcomes the announcement of the final results of Madagascar’s presidential election. We commend the Malagasy electoral authorities for organizing a poll that reflects the will of the Malagasy people and are grateful to the United Nations for its support to the electoral process.

The election of a new president represents an opportunity for Madagascar to make progress on strengthening democratic institutions, improving respect for human rights, combating corruption, and rebuilding its economy. We look forward to working productively with President-elect Rajaonarimampianina as Madagascar implements the roadmap for the restoration of democracy developed by the Southern African Development Community in 2011.

We look to the president-elect to form a new government whose members have the full confidence of the Malagasy public and the international community.