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Paper short abstract

This paper argues that voice and knowledge transmission are deeply political practices for Malagasy women. Through orality, storytelling, intergenerational exchange, and creative expression, women turn everyday cultural practices into sites of political agency where formal spaces exclude them.

Paper long abstract

This paper examines how Malagasy women engage politically through locally rooted and non-traditional practices. The paper argues that voice and knowledge transmission constitute deeply political practices. Women’s engagement emerges from culturally embedded forms of orality, intergenerational exchange, and creative expression, demonstrating how the personal, communal, and cultural intersect with political agency. Everyday practices, cultural expression, and intergenerational learning operate as vital modes of participation, asserting women’s presence, shaping discourse, and sustaining movements. The paper highlights how Malagasy women claim space, transmit knowledge, and sustain collective political consciousness in contexts where formal spaces of power often exclude them.

Orality structures social and political life. Slam poetry offers accessible and youth-oriented platforms for women to articulate local concerns, critique social norms, and connect with diverse audiences. Women further use public speaking and advocacy to influence legal debates, raise public awareness, and shape policy agendas. Social media enables women to influence broader audiences beyond traditional forms of speech.

Knowledge transmission is equally relevant. Women use both formal and informal gatherings to share experiences, educate peers, and collectively reflect on social and political challenges. Storytelling transforms personal experiences into collective awareness: narratives of resilience, professional achievement, or survival become resources for political inspiration and action. Artistic and cultural interventions, including performances, visual arts, and exhibitions, serve as tools to preserve heritage, reclaim erased histories, and reframe collective memory. These practices illustrate how preserving the self and community knowledge functions as political work, reinforcing collective identity and agency in subtle yet transformative ways.