A partnership between the local community, international NGOs and research institutions aims to demonstrate the economic, conservation and fisheries benefits that can arise from establishing Madagascar’s first community-run Marine Protected Area (MPA).

The village of Andavadoaka, and its offshore islands represent some of the most remote and biodiverse coral habitats in the western Indian Ocean. The poverty-stricken Vezo population is entirely dependent on marine resources for subsistence and family income. Octopus constitutes the largest portion of marine life harvested in the region, caught through a fishing technique that is destructive to the underlying reef habitat. Fisheries data and observations from fishermen now indicate that octopus is overexploited.

The partnership is working with the Andavadoaka community to implement Madagascar’s first experimental community-run Marine Protected Area, developing management solutions to help sustain the traditional artisanal fishing economy as well as minimise the environmental impacts of human activities on the region’s marine and coastal environments.