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A conservation plan for Madagascar
As many areas as possible should be protected in Madagascar. If protected areas can be developed in a manner to generate income for local communities, an increasing number of parks should theoretically create more economic benefits for a greater share of the population. Increase surveillance of and patrols in protected areas. This can be done at reduced cost if local communities benefit from the success of the park. If locals have a vested interest (i.e., are compensated via entrance fees, hired as guides, make handicrafts to sell to tourists, and learn to value their ecosystem for the services it can provide), they will want to watch the park so that the source of their income is not diminished. Community surveillance is the most effective way to patrol a protected area, though it will probably be necessary to have park staff conduct patrols as well. Guides should also be trained to keep watch for activities that are damaging to the ecosystem and report suspicious activities at park headquarters. Build research facilities for training Malagasy scientists and guides Madagascar needs to build its intellectual capital to grow its economy and make the best use of the country's resources. There need to be further studies of endemic species (many just have a name and a location, and new species are being discovered every year) for both pure research reasons and potential commercial applications. Improved crop yields and reduced erosion could also be possible with future research. Establish programs that promote sustainable use Programs that promote sustainable use are key to elevating the standard of living for people living around Madagascar's protected areas. Not all members of a community will see the direct benefits from employment in the service or production sector, and many people will still rely on traditional use of the natural resources around them. These resources must be used in a more effective manner to maximize productivity and minimize the impact on the environment. Compensate displaced people As more protected areas are set aside, it is inevitable that some people may be asked to move. It is important that these people are compensated for abandoning their existing livelihood and homes. While direct cash payouts is an option, a better strategy is providing these displaced people with long-term income possibilities through training in better agricultural techniques or alternative crops. Promote ecotourism Ecotourism is perhaps the best hope for developing Madagascar's economy. Planners should seek to minimize the environmental impact and maximize the benefits for local communities. Ensure economic success does not result in increased deforestation As Malagasy begin to reap benefits from conservation-related activities, it is important that they not reinvest this income in activities that result in further deforestation. Traditionally in many villages, the more money someone made, the more money was put back into land-clearing. Rural banks and savings institutions are virtually unknown in many parts of Madagascar. Such facilities, which would enable both saving and lending, could rapidly change the lives of millions of Malagasy through increased entrepreneurship and the ability to put away money for the future. Encourage entrepreneurship Encouraging entrepreneurship through such a microcredit strategy could pay significant dividends for the Malagasy economy as a whole. Studies in other developing countries have found that entrepreneurial skills among the poor are actually quite high when they are given access to capital. Default rates are typically quite low as well (do the poor have a greater respect for money?). Stimulating entrepreneurship through small low-cost loans is possibly a better approach than handouts, which may do little more than breed dependency and reduce human dignity. << Previous | Next >> Conservation index
Threats to Madagascar's environment | Saving Madagascar's environment | Rehabilitating ecosystems in Madagascar | What happened to Madagascar's megafauna | Conservation plan for Madagascar | Funding conservation initiatives in Madagascar Ecotourism hints | Being an ethical traveler Find a mistake? Want to submit pictures or content? Contact WildMadagascar.org Almost all pictures on this site were taken with a Konica Minolta |
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RECENT NEWS Mining and biodiversity offsets in Madagascar 
(08/30/2009) Rio Tinto's ilmenite mine in southeastern Madagascar is among the largest on the planet. At peak capacity, its owners say, it could produce as much as 2 million tons of the stuff—worth roughly $100 a ton—each year, to be shipped off and smelted abroad. What's left of it after refining—some 60 percent of the ore that arrives from Madagascar—will be sold for $2000 a ton as titanium dioxide, a pigment used in everything from white paint and tennis court lines to sunscreen and toothpaste.
Destruction worsens in Madagascar (08/20/2009) Armed bands are decimating rainforest reserves in northeastern Madagascar, killing lemurs and intimidating conservation workers, despite widespread condemnation by international environmental groups. Appalling photos reveal lemur carnage in Madagascar (08/20/2009) New pictures released by Conservation International depict a troubling development in Madagascar: the emergence of a commercial bushmeat market for lemurs. In the aftermath of a March coup that saw Madagascar's president replaced at gunpoint by the capital city's mayor, Madagascar's reserves — especially in the northern part of the country — were ravaged by illegal loggers. Armed bands, financed by foreign timber traders, went into Marojejy and Masoala national parks, harvesting valuable hardwoods including rosewood and ebonies. Without support from the central government — or international agencies that pulled aid following the coup — there was no one to stop the carnage. But now it emerges that timber wasn't the only target. Saving the tsingy forests in Madagascar (08/17/2009) After the success of their Sahafina Forest project, Biodiversity Conservation Madagascar is now branching out to the tsingy forest of Beanka, a project set to launch in October this year. Biodiversity Conservation Madagascar (BCM) has been granted a 25-year lease on a 14,000-hectare area of dry hardwood forest, the Beanka tsingy, situated 75 km east of Maintirano in western Madagascar. 'Tsingy' are spectacular razor-sharp limestone pinnacles found on the west and north of the island, formed by acidic rain erosion. The deciduous forests that inhabit them are characterized by high plant and animal endemism. The Malagasy organization plans to apply the same principles here – protection of the forest, socio-economic development and forest restoration – that brought them success with their last project, the 2,500-hectare forest block of Sahafina on Madagascar’s east coast. Lessons from the crisis in Madagascar, an interview with Erik Patel (08/11/2009) On March 17th of this year the President of Madagascar, Marc Ravalomanana, resigned his post. This made way for Andry Rajoelina, mayor of Madagascar's capital, to install himself as president with help from the military. The unrest and confusion that usually accompanies such a coup brought disaster on many of Madagascar's biological treasures. Within days of Ravalomanana's resignation, armed gangs, allegedly funded by Chinese traders, entered two of Madagascar's world-renowned national parks, Marojejy and Masoala parks, and began to log rosewood, ebonies, and other valuable hardwoods. The pillaging lasted months but the situation began to calm down over the summer. Now that the crisis in Madagascar has abated—at least for the time being—it's time to take stock. In order to do so, Mongabay spoke to Erik Patel, an expert on the Critically Endangered Silky Sifaka and frequent visitor to Madagascar, to find out what the damage looks like firsthand and to see what lessons might be learned. Despite violent protests and coup, Daewoo continues to hold cropland in Madagascar (06/19/2009) Despite violent protests that have left more than 100 dead and led to the ouster of a democratically-elected president, Daewoo Logistics Corp. continues to hold 218,000 hectares of cropland in Madagascar, according to a new campaign by Rainforest Rescue. Conservation success in Madagascar proves illusory in crisis (06/12/2009) Despite the popularity he enjoyed abroad, domestic support for ousted president Marc Ravalomanana eroded rather quickly last February when he went head to head with Andry Rajoelina, the rookie mayor of Madagascar's capital. Rajoelina rallied disparate opposition groups to the cause and soon toppled the incumbent to become, at his own proclamation, President of the "High Authority of Transition." For the country as a whole, the results have not been encouraging. The tourism industry has shriveled to a shadow of itself, important donors have suspended non-humanitarian aid, and a power vacuum has set in in remote regions of the island, wreaking havoc on some of its most fragile and prized ecosystems. Forest Recovery Programs in Madagascar (06/01/2009) Despite being one of the last habitable land masses on earth to be settled by man, Madagascar has lost more of its forests than most countries; less than 10% of its original forest cover now remains, and much of that is degraded. Political turmoil that erupted earlier this year continues to rumble on and the ensuing lawlessness has created the opportunity for illegal logging syndicates to plunder national parks, most notably Marojejy and Masoala, for valuable hardwoods and wildlife. Approximately 200 new frogs discovered in Madagascar threatened by political instability (05/11/2009) Amid the amphibian extinction crisis—where amphibians worldwide are disappearing due to habitat loss, pollution, and a devastating fungal epidemic—the Spanish Scientific Research Council (CSIC) has announced some good news. In a survey of the island-nation of Madagascar they have identified between 129 and 221 new species of frogs. The discovery of so many new species nearly doubles the island's total number of frogs. More news
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