[Based on the Project Idea Note of June 2009]

The Marolombo forest corridor, situated in east-central Madagascar, covers an area of approximately 230 000 ha including 90 000 hectares of primary forests. This corridor is the last terrestrial protected area to be created within the system of protected areas in Madagascar operated by the Association Nationale pour la Gestion des Aires Protégées (ANGAP). The communities inhabiting the corridor rank among the poorest in Madagascar with an annual income of below 125 €.
 
The forest carbon project will be financed by the European Union that commits itself to funding the protected area for five years. Beyond funding by the European Union, the anticipated carbon revenue from the project will support the communities and municipalities in preserving the biodiversity of the corridors. The primary forests within the corridor will be managed by both ANGAP and local communities. The project furthermore aims at strengthening the capacity of the local communities through the valorization of forest ecosystems.

The project commenced in 2009 and will be implemented within five years. While the project includes elements of avoided deforestation (REDD) as well as of afforestation/reforestation (A/R), the component described herein includes the A/R component of the project only. A feasibility study will be conducted in the first year for the development of the A/R CDM project  in the buffer zone of the protected area. The project will be managed locally; by the local communities, decentralised authorities and technical service providers. During the first five years, the project will seek technical expertise and financial support, while A/R related activities will start during the second year.

The A/R project will include trees that correspond well to ecological, economic and social criteria. It will be based on Eucalyptus Robusta and Acacia Mangium. Each species will cover a total surface of 1 000 ha.

The proposed project is in line with the overall framework for poverty reduction through sustainable forest management in Madagascar; the project aims at climate change mitigation through the absorption of CO2 emissions.

The outcomes of the forest carbon project are in line with those of protecting the primary forest area in Madagascar:

• Environmental services are maintained;
  
• Additional revenue is generated for communities;
  
• Lessons are drawn for the replicability of such projects in other protected areas of the island;
  
• The achievements of the project will stimulate the current thinking on the financial sustainability of environmental services and feed into policy dialogues on a national as well as on an international  level.