Conservation and Sustainable Development in the Pointe à Larrée Territory

With one of the highest rates of endemism in the world, Madagascar is a global priority for biodiversity conservation. The project is led and developed by the FANAMBY Association and the Missouri Botanical Garden (MBG), and includes support for the creation of a vanilla value chain, driven and financed by the private sector. It directly involves 3,000 farmers in the area. The selected project area is the area of influence of the New Protected Area (NPA) of Pointe à Larrée in Madagascar.

For over 50 years, vanilla production has been one of Madagascar’s most lucrative agricultural activities. The island remains the world's leading vanilla exporter, holding a market share of 60 to 75% of global supply. The geographical and physical characteristics of the soil in the Soanierano Ivongo district make it highly suitable for sustainable vanilla production. However, the vanilla value chain is complex and often lacks transparency, exacerbating the economic challenges faced by producers—such as the presence of illegal middlemen, theft of vanilla beans, individualized production without cooperatives, price volatility, limited production, and weak local government representation.

The project consists of three main components:

1. Structuring a High-Value Vanilla Supply Chain

In a new vanilla production area covering three municipalities in the Soanierana–Ivongo District, this component focuses on:

• Organizing and strengthening producer capacity,
• Providing equipment,
• Securing the supply chain at the local, municipal, and regional levels.

2. Preserving Biodiversity and Promoting Sustainable Management of Natural Resources and Land

This component supports the development of the vanilla sector through:

• Biodiversity conservation efforts,
• Sustainable management of natural resources in the area of influence of the Pointe à Larrée New Protected Area (NPA).

3. Food Security and Generation of Alternative Income

At the territorial level, this component promotes:

• Strengthening food security,
• Supporting alternative income-generating activities for households in the three target municipalities, through:
  • Promotion of an ecologically intensive and economically viable rice cultivation model,
  • Support for the diversification of food crops,
  • Promotion of alternative income-generating activities,
  • Development of agricultural value chains such as cereals and legumes,
  • Establishment of community vegetable gardens.

• Strengthen the COBA network (Community-Based Organizations) and raise awareness among local populations on the importance of preserving ecosystems and biodiversity, particularly for their buffering role against increasingly severe cyclones linked to climate change.
• Support conservation and protection efforts in the New Protected Area (NPA)—including the establishment of community ranger patrols—through the development of substantial year-round income-generating activities.
• Pilot small-scale initiatives on various themes such as small livestock farming, coastal fishing, clove nurseries, and eco-tourism.
• Restore the original biodiversity of the NPA by sustainably changing local populations’ opportunistic behaviors toward forest resources during lean periods, and expand the NPA from 770 hectares to 2,800 hectares to include the areas transferred to the COBAs.