The Discreet Businessman with Strong Ties to Mauritius
The influential Malagasy businessman Maminiaina Ravatomanga, better known as Mamy, is closely connected to the ousted Malagasy president, Andry Rajoelina, who is also in exile in Dubai. Mamy is no stranger to Mauritius.
He arrived at Plaisance Airport on October 12 at 00:44, aboard a private Cessna jet registered as 5R-HMR, which belongs to his company SODIAT. He was accompanied by his family and former Malagasy Prime Minister Christian Ntsay. Ranked by Forbes in 2017 as the second richest person in Madagascar, Mamy is a regular visitor to Mauritius, where he has significant economic interests.
For over a decade, he has been weaving a network of commercial and financial interests, establishing Mauritius as a strategic hub for some of his operations.
Born in 1968 in Madagascar, Mamy Ravatomanga, who also holds Ivorian nationality, founded the SODIAT Group in 1990, a conglomerate involved in general trade, import-export, real estate, and transport. Leading an empire that employs thousands, he is recognized as a discreet yet influential player in the export of agricultural products, particularly lychees – Madagascar produces about 40,000 tons annually, mainly for Europe and Asia.
Mamy Ravatomanga is seen as the "master puppeteer" in this sector, which constitutes a genuine "gold mine" for the Malagasy economy. Allegations of monopoly surfaced in 2020-2021, followed by corruption complaints in 2022 involving companies linked to his group, though no tangible evidence has been presented to date. Port Louis has also served as a transit port for some shipments.
According to a Malagasy official in Mauritius contacted by Le Défi Media Group, Mamy Ravatomanga conducts business in Mauritius and visits regularly – both for work and leisure. Mauritius is a country he particularly cherishes.
More serious are the suspicions of illegal trafficking in rosewood, a protected species whose export has been banned since 2000. Mamy Ravatomanga has been accused of indirect involvement since 2011, through subsidiaries like Sodiatrans, in a network exporting hundreds of containers to China. In July-August 2011, six containers loaded with 180 tons of precious wood – disguised as dried beans and zebu horns – were seized at Port Louis port aboard the ship Markella. An investigation was conducted by the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC), but it did not yield conclusive results.
In 2015, the French National Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF) opened an investigation into allegations of rosewood trafficking, corruption, and tax fraud. Two years later, French investigators traveled to Madagascar to interview Mamy Ravatomanga and his wife, in coordination with the Malagasy Independent Anti-Corruption Office (Bianco).
The PNF authorized the seizure of four properties in France – three apartments and a house – but in July 2019, the Paris Court of Appeal lifted the seizures.
The Panama Papers of 2016 identified Mamy Ravatomanga as an officer and majority shareholder of a company registered in the British Virgin Islands. A French investigation launched in 2018 for corruption and illicit assets sought assistance from Mauritian authorities, who confirmed his financial interest in the Mauritian offshore sector. In August 2023, the PNF's preliminary investigation was closed without further action.
This procedure concerned organized money laundering, corruption of a public official, tax fraud, and rosewood trafficking. The PNF justified its decision due to an "insufficiently characterized offense."
An ally of Andry Rajoelina since he came to power in 2009, Ravatomanga represents the "gray eminence" of the regime, facilitating public contracts and economic decisions.
Another controversial issue involves the escape of former Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi CEO Carlos Ghosn in 2020. One of the planes from the Malagasy airline TOA, owned by Mamy Ravatomanga, was allegedly used for his escape to France.
Targeted by Generation Z and at the center of recent Malagasy protests, the typically discreet businessman spoke out on October 6 during a nearly two-hour special broadcast on three private television channels. He addressed accusations of "state mafia": "I have nothing to hide. For five years, the Paris National Financial Prosecutor's Office has investigated and found nothing." He added, "They invent files on me: rosewood, document falsifications. Then they realize the case is empty."
