Madagascar is making headlines at the IUCN World Conservation Congress (WCC) with the release of the updated Madagascar Protected Area Outlook 2025, which charts a bold course for the island nation’s conservation future. The comprehensive assessment evaluating the deforestation rates of Madagascar’s 109 Protected Areas is the result of a collaboration between the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development (MEDD), FAPBM, Madagascar National Parks, and our 26 Malagasy partners.
In a landmark announcement at WCC, Madagascar’s conservation leaders have committed to zero Protected Area forest loss by 2030. This ambitious and critical expansion of protections recognizes Madagascar’s irreplaceable biodiversity—90% of its wildlife exists nowhere else on Earth—and the urgent need to protect it from deforestation, mining, and climate change. The updated Outlook provides both a sobering assessment of current challenges and a practical roadmap for success.
Furthermore, Conservation Allies and our Madagascar partners gathered today to further address the current conservation challenges, strategies, and achievements of Madagascar, and the broader African continent. Participating partners included Fanamby, Impact Madagascar, Madagasikara Voakajy, GERP, NEST, ADHET, Dahari, and Mauritian Wildlife Foundation.
By increasing global awareness of Madagascar’s critical conservation situation, we’re connecting Malagasy conservation leaders with the global community and working to turn this week’s ambitious commitments into concrete, lasting action. Africa’s presence at WCC represents more than policy commitments—it’s a call to action for the global conservation community to support local partners already working tirelessly to protect some of the world’s most extraordinary ecosystems.
