Posted on October, 27 2016
Madagascar's biodiversity is at high risk, according to the 2016 edition of the Living Planet Report, a scientific analysis conducted every two years by WWF on the health of our planet and its impact of human activity.
The populations of vertebrates - fish, birds, mammals, amphibians and reptiles - fell by 58% between 1970 and 2012 throughout the world. And if we do nothing to reverse the trend, this decline could continue to worsen and would reach 67% by 2020.
Madagascar is in the red zone and risks losing 30% of its fauna and flora at the end of the XXIst century if we continue using natural resources at the current rate. The report also shows that the soil of Madagascar is already heavily degraded, which has important negative consequences on food security.
In addition, the country's economic growth is highly dependent on environmental conditions and the natural capital. Thus, it is crucial to "value nature in economic and political decisions," says the report.
The preservation and enhancement of the natural capital is therefore a major challenge for the country's development and WWF Madagascar focuses its conservation strategy to protect biodiversity through the establishment of a network that can combine green (forest ecosystems) blue (marine and aquatic ecosystems) and gray infrastructures (urbanization).
For this WWF Madagascar works closely with local people to find lasting solutions to support biodiversity and local economic and social development.
Thus the village of Manombo in the Melaky region, on the west coast of Madagascar, is quoted by the Living Planet Report as one of the several models in the world, where the local community and WWF work together to preserve the mangroves:
"Local people have taken action to remedy the loss of mangroves, which provide them with their necessary livelihoods. Since September 2015, men, women and children of the village of Manombo have indeed become key players in the conservation and restoration of mangroves. The benefits for local communities consist in a larger access to fish and crab stocks, regular income sources, and building resilience against climate change. The village community has participated in a reforestation campaign for the planting of some 9,000 mangrove propagules to restore the degraded forests surrounding the village. The the areas around Manombo, other communities have also planted 49,000 seedlings. This is a huge success for local communities and for the future of their forests. "