This story was originally published in the 2023 CEPF Impact Report.

Silk production began in the 19th century in Madagascar—it’s woven into the culture. It’s also an important economic activity. And key to silk production are not only skilled local weavers, but also wild silkworms and the tapia trees (Uapaca bojeri) that feed them. The silkworms and tapia tree forests are endemic to Madagascar, but the tapia forests are in decline due to clearing for agricultural production and charcoal.

Fortifying the Forest

Malagasy organization Ny Tanintsika and the Natural Sciences Department of the University of Antananarivo conducted research on repopulating wild silkworms in tapia tree forests and collaborated with local communities to improve livelihoods. 

“The tapia forest is important both ecologically and economically,” said Eugénie Raharisoa, the national coordinator of Ny Tanintsika, noting that the forest not only supports silk production, but also prevents soil erosion, and by extension, protects the livelihoods of people who collect mushrooms, medicinal plants and plants for dyeing.

Working with the Union Amafi, a group of grassroots communities managing the tapia forest in the district of Ambatofinandrahana in Central Madagascar, the project supported the production of tapia seedlings and other tree species, for replanting in the forest. The project team also established patrols to monitor pressures in the forest and assist researchers. By the end of the project, the density of silkworms in the targeted forest had increased by 60 times compared to the baseline density recorded in 2020. This jump was attributed in part to the involvement of the community through two newly installed silkworm nursery centers, where silkworm eggs are produced.

treeplanting_vinany_1.jpg

Caption: 

Community tree planting in Ambatofinandrahana.

Credit: 

© Sandra Randrianjatovo/Ny Tanintsika

Income, Food Security and Training

In total, 200 men and 150 women recorded increased income as a result of the project. Ten communities totaling 4,026 people (including 822 women) benefited via increased food security due to receipt of seeds to support agricultural activities. Additional community benefits included the training of 30 women in dyeing and weaving silk, and the creation of a “self-help” village credit and savings system that boosted sources of income for local communities and benefited 580 persons.

“After the awareness raising concerning this self-help group I immediately signed up to be a member,” said Ravao, a mother of two from the village of Mahavanona. “I believed that this was an opportunity and I could change my life. I borrowed 50,000 ariary (US$11) to open my little grocery in my village and, after three months, I managed to pay back my loan.”

The project also set up a silk house for the transformation of cocoons into yarn, and at project completion, 793 kilograms of raw cocoons and silk threads were stored in the silk house, with an additional 1,500 kilograms of cocoons available in neighboring villages.