Tsitongambarika (TGK) forest is home to a high diversity of species, including many endemics. These biodiversity values are being steadily eroded due to unsustainable use of forest resources, clearance of forest for shifting cultivation, associated fires and charcoal production. The underlying cause of these threats is food insecurity among local, forest-dependent communities, exacerbated by steady decline and siltation of water sources for irrigation as a result of deforestation. The potential negative effects of deforestation and degradation to ecosystem services extend well beyond the immediate TGK forest area. TGK forest degradation threatens water catchment protection to nearby town of Tolagnaro (Fort Dauphin). Also, several rivers and springs, which are the main sources of domestic, industrial and irrigation water for other downriver populations, are threatened. This might undermine the projected major economic development of Tolagnaro town, which has been designated as one of three major economic growth poles by the Malagasy Government in partnership with the World Bank. The following specific problems flow from the overall problem described above:
Intrinsic Biodiversity Problem - The disappearance of the lowland humid forest ecosystem of TGK would constitute a loss of the largest remaining area of this highly threatened and diverse vegetation type in Southern Madagascar, as well as a number of species endemic to the SE, and even to TGK itself, and many more that are poorly, if at all, represented in existing PAs.
Resources, Knowledge and Cultural Motivation Problem - There is a lack of resources and capacity within national NGOs and government authorities to manage PAs. New, flexible models are required to spread good practice and value based motivation.
Lack of Private Sector Engagement Problem - Like many other developing countries, Madagascar is experiencing accelerating economic growth, with associated pressures on natural ecosystems. The mining sector alone is predicted to grow from 4% to 30% of GDP by 2012. There is a pressing need to engage the private sector in multi-sectoral partnerships with government and civil society that extend well beyond compliance with environmental regulations and generate new sources for biodiversity conservation.
Natural resources overexploitation Problem - Local communities exert the main direct pressures on forest resources in Madagascar. The unsustainable use of forest resources is driven by demand for fuel-wood, charcoal production, medicinal plants, bushmeat and land for agricultural production. The precarious living conditions, and, in particular, low levels of food security, typical of forest-adjacent communities, only exacerbate the depletion of forest resources, since these communities have very limited alternative livelihood options.  If action is not taken quickly, the natural resource base that underpins local livelihoods and provides a safety net during times of food shortages will be depleted.
The most sustainable solution to all these problems is, as described in this proposal, the effective management of TGK as a participatory Protected Area (PA), which will also offer powerful lessons to other practitioners in the immediate area and beyond. << Read less

Establish an effective, sustainably financed, community co-managed protected area through the creation and promotion of an effective multi-sectoral partnership among the government, civil society and the private sector.

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TGK, a lowland humid forest in the south, fills a major gap in Madagascar's PA coverage representativity as this type of forest is currently under-represented within the National PA system. For the past years, Asity Madagascar, BirdLife International and national government agencies have been working together to demonstrate the high biodiversity value of TGK, its irreplaceability and its vital function in ensuring connectivity with other PAs. Action TGK therefore, supports the Government of Madagascar’s stated wish to suitably extend coverage of the national PA network and to improve management systems. Also, the government of the Anosy Region elected TGK as a priority site for inclusion in the expanded system of national PAs. From a global perspective, Madagascar is a Least Developed Country (LDC) undergoing both rapid population growth (approx. 3% per year) and rapid deforestation (i.e. only 9.9% of the island’s original vegetation remains and less than 20% of that is formally protected). << Read less

The importance and magnitude of carbon sequestration in Action TGK is fully acknowledged by the partners given the extent and density of the forest cover in TGK. The Action objectives include a full investigation of the potential of carbon based financial mechanisms. A project, funded and implemented by Rio Tinto (QMM), has recently begun to quantify carbon budgets within TGK forest and to estimate annual sequestration capacity through avoided deforestation and reforestation of degraded sites. Where applicable, the project will investigate sale of carbon credits through a REDD (Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation) mechanism or into voluntary carbon markets generating a potential funding stream for the Action TGK project.

Various biological studies, carried out since 1989 have shown that TGK is home to globally threatened and endemic species, not only to Madagascar, but to TGK alone.  The forest is also important for the provision of wood for fuel and construction as well as bush meat and medicinal plants to the people in the immediate proximity of the forest and in the regional town of Fort Dauphin.  In addition, this forest serves to protect the catchments of several rivers, which provide irrigation water for much of the region as well as water for the local town of Fort Dauphin. << Read less

In order to obtain temporary protection for TGK, Conservation International (CI) and Rio Tinto (QMM) have been supporting Asity Madagascar and the Government of Madagascar in the development of a simplified PA management plan as a precursor to definitive protection. The process is now close to the completion of the full PA management and business plan for TGK.  This process is critical for facilitating the proposed activities in the Action TGK and will continue in parallel and in addition to Action TGK objectives. In terms of long term sustainable financing by the end of project year, at least 2 partnerships with EAZA members and at least two other long-term financing mechanisms (e.g. endowment fund, carbon credit, etc) will be investigated for the new PA. In addition, due to the presence of the multinational mining company Rio Tinto, and as part of a global strategy for offsetting its footprint on biodiversity, the company, which operates an ilmenite mine, close to but outside of TGK forest, will remain committed to support the new PA. << Read less

Action TGK explicitly includes community participation as a Key Objective. Villages are represented by local community management committees that have been granted the management of the forest through “Transferts de Gestion”. Also, Asity Madagascar, the main implementing National NGO Partner, has a history of strong roots into the community. The Government of Madagascar encourages National NGOs to play a leading role in the implementation of actions including capacity building to improve conservation results.  In order to strengthen this, BirdLife International will provide continual mentoring support to Asity Madagascar on key project activities. In addition, there will be a particular focus on the inclusion of women in the local structures for PA management and also in the participatory ecological monitoring teams. All Partners are committed to the promotion of gender mainstreaming and equal opportunities in the implementation of the Action. The traditional community elders and leaders will be more fully integrated into these local management structures too, in order for them to take responsibility and be effective at forest management. After careful discussion from village to national level, it is agreed that villagers will be compensated for well-documented opportunity and direct costs of participation; flat-rate per diems and salaries will not be paid. Finally, there is potential for economic growth in the communities adjacent to the Action. However, even if these changes bring the promise of development for many, they also represent a threat of increased marginalisation of the most vulnerable members of society, who are the least well prepared to take advantage of the new economic opportunities. In this context, it is significant that the Action will work with some of the most economically marginalised sections of Anosy society - indigenous, forest-adjacent communities - and that it will pay particular attention to providing them with a voice and the means (through, for example, the establishment of local management structures for the new PA) to influence and respond to change when it occurs. Overall, the ability of local communities to sustainably manage forest resources will be strengthened, and they will be provided with appropriate tools to capture more of the socio-economic benefits that will arise from the conservation of TGK. Sustainable management will offer new opportunities, especially valuing the ecosystem goods and services provided by the forest and their sustainable utilisation by the local populations. << Read less

In 2008, nationwide progress towards PoWPA implementation and priority setting in Madagascar was reviewed. During this process, three main barriers and limitations preventing the existing PA system from achieving the targets of the CBD PoWPA were identified. The Government of Madagascar responded by addressing two of the three barriers through the UNDP-GEF Supporting country action on the CBD PoWPA project in 2008. Action TGK aims to respond to the third identified barrier, more specifically: Barrier 2) PAs may be perceived to be less important among key actors than other pressing social and economic activities. Action TGK objectives prioritise the involvement of local communities and other relevant stakeholders to satisfactorily improve perceptions of PA protection and its related benefits. In addition, two of the three most commonly identified PA threats are addressed by the Action, they are: 1) “Natural habitat loss, fragmentation and isolation” and 2) “Subsistence overexploitation, collection and hunting”. At the local level, TGK is included on the list of regional priorities for inclusion in the National PA System, prepared by the government of Anosy Region. << Read less

Goal 1.1: To establish and strengthen national and regional systems of protected areas integrated into a global network as a contribution to globally agreed goals
Goal 1.2: To integrate protected areas into broader land- and seascapes and sectors so as to maintain ecological structure and function
Goal 1.4: To substantially improve site-based protected area planning and management
Goal 1.5: To prevent and mitigate the negative impacts of key threats to protected areas
Goal 2.1: To promote equity and benefit-sharing
Goal 2.2: To enhance and secure involvement of indigenous and local communities and relevant stakeholders
Goal 3.2: To build capacity for the planning, establishment and management of protected areas
Goal 3.4: To ensure financial sustainability of protected areas and national and regional systems of protected areas
Goal 3.5: To strengthen communication, education and public awareness
Goal 4.3: To assess and monitor protected area status and trends
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