Key messages
- A literature review of customary tenure in Madagascar found that declines in the legitimacy of customary systems tended to be associated with socioeconomic changes linked to in-migration, proximity to major markets and accessibility.
- A newly developed tenure vulnerability map showed counter-intuitive results for two study sites in northern Madagascar: the site with the stronger customary system and higher perceptions of tenure security had a higher tenure vulnerability rating.
- The results may reflect a gold mining boom in the area. The stronger customary system has experienced a rapid increase in population density over the past decade. Yet, because the boom is recent, the customary system still retains local-level legitimacy.
- The map shows promise for identifying areas where local tenure systems are likely experiencing stress, but groundtruthing is needed to refine the approach.
- The analysis uses datasets that are publicly available and can easily be replicated for other countries.
Publication year
2024
Authors
Language
English
Keywords
land tenure, customary rights, literature reviews, livelihoods, socioeconomics
Geographic
Madagascar
