The Effects of Road Use on Livelihoods and Protected Area Natural Resource Collection in Northeastern Madagascar

As infrastructure improves, road networks increasingly benefit surrounding human populations; however, they may also fragment habitats and increase natural resource extraction, negatively affecting biodiversity. Understanding the relationship between road connectivity and protected areas can help us recommend future policy-relevant research to improve the well-being of road-users while ensuring wildlife protection. Madagascar is one of the most biodiverse and poorest countries on Earth. Poor road connectivity is partly to blame for socioeconomic challenges, and infrastructure development increasingly borders and bisects protected areas. To understand the effects of protected area bisecting roads, we surveyed 3,882 individuals traveling on a road bisecting Anjanaharibe-Sud Special Reserve, in northeast Madagascar. Specifically, we examined who uses this road, the costs of such travel, and their implications for livelihoods and biodiversity. Road use was high, with 250 travelers daily using the road to connect to markets, families, and essential services. Yet, resource collection from the forest was relatively low. The road connected western agricultural producers to eastern markets and returned manufactured goods westward. However, poor road conditions acted as a barrier to travel, particularly for women, older adults, and the underemployed. Countries with low development status are most susceptible to road-induced environmental degradation, thus efforts for conserving biodiversity must also be addressed. Given the importance of the road to regional livelihoods, our findings suggest that, when combined with extensive mitigation efforts to support the protected area, improved road conditions could provide irreplaceable socioeconomic benefits to Madagascar’s most vulnerable human populations.