ABSTRACT
The expansion of protected area (PA) networks has been the predominant focus of the modern conservation movement; however, PAs must also be effectively managed to conserve their constituent biodiversity. To better understand the factors that may undermine PA management effectiveness, we used the Institutional Analysis and Development framework to understand the persistence of deforestation in one of Madagascar’s most important PAs, Menabe-Antimena. We carried out 53 key informant interview and 12 focus groups with local community members, staff of conservation NGOs and government agencies. We found that deforestation for cash crop cultivation persists because (i) the PA managers have inadequate funding to either provide farmers with viable alternatives to shifting cultivation or to adequately enforce the law, (ii) enforcement targets farmers rather than the private sector operators driving trade, and (iii) the PA has been insufficiently mainstreamed into regional economic and governance priorities. As a result, shifting cultivation remains an attractive livelihood option for resident and migrant communities, and regional authorities (including law enforcement agencies) fail to defend the protected area against the cash crop industry driving deforestation.
