Vondrozo: Forest protection par excellence

As part of the program of forest protection undertaken by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the community living in the District of Vondrozo sets a good example of environmental protection. Indeed, as written in the WWF’s website, in this community, “the villagers have set an example of a citizen, committed and involved community. Their transfer of management contracts have been extended for ten years starting from the year 2012”.

This year, the forest management contract has been extended for another decade. This indeed shows the trust of WWF on what this community has already undertaken since the launch of forest protection programs. “It’s comforting to be able to show the younger generations the wisest approach to secure their future,” said Jean-Francois, a farmer living in the rural Commune of Madiorano. Behind this confidence is built a whole life and a way of living that grassroots communities, where Jean-Francois belongs, have adopted over time: “The forest serves men, men protect the forest.”

The District of Vondrozo is located at 82 km from Farafangana. 95 000 people live there and they are spread out in 16 rural communes in the heart of a forest corridor of the Southeast, commonly called the “corridor Fandriana-Vondrozo”. This corridor covers an area of ​​499 600ha, lying on a strip of 400 km long and of 5 to 10km wide.

WWF chose to support the conservation of this forest corridor by giving responsibilities to local communities, through the transfer of management of natural resources and the promotion of realistic alternatives to the forest. “The goal is to combine the conservation of natural habitats and the social and economic development of surrounding communities in a sustainable manner,” explained Bastian Tsiverimanana, socio-organizer of WWF in Vondrozo and Vangaindrano.