Madagascar is one of the poorest countries in the world, with over half the population living well below the World Bank’s poverty line of one dollar a day, and most men cannot expect to see their 56th year. The country is also estimated to have one of the largest gem stone deposits on the planet. The sapphire trade directly links the very poorest Malagasy labourers to some of the richest people in the world – buyers at bespoke jewellers in London, Paris and New York. Stones bought to flaunt wealth come from a country without basic infrastructure – roads, healthcare, education.

This is the story of the people who mine Madagascar