Institutionnalisation de la protection environnementale et développement de l’artisanat minier dans les espaces sensibles de Madagascar

In Madagascar, during the last few years, conservation of biodiversity has become a major priority for the government. Indeed, with the help of the foreign countries, Madagascar is currently expanding its network of protected areas. But despite the integration of participant governance on the ground, this movement contributes to the destabilization of local communities. Meanwhile, multiple crises (economic crisis, latent and recurrent political crises) take place in Madagascar. Besides, the country is the scene of a tremendous “boom” of informal activities in general, and small-scale mining in particular. In many cases, when the protection of sensitive environments is taken from local communities for the benefit of institutional actors, the development of these destructive activities in protected areas increases. To fight against this pernicious effect of the institutionalization of environmental protection, it is urgent to extend the modes of governance. These modes must be as flexible as possible, according to local contexts, and have to take into account traditional, formal or informal actors.