Wikipedia
Velondriake, meaning “to live with the sea” in the Vezo dialect of the Malagasy language, is a locally managed marine area (LMMA) in southwest Madagascar. Covering a marine and coastal area of about , and home to nearly 7,000 resident Vezo fishers, Velondriake is one of the largest LMMAs in the western Indian Ocean. The LMMA includes coral reefs, mangroves, seagrass beds, baobab forests, Spiny forest and other threatened habitats.
A local set of laws devised by the communities within Velondriake, called "dina", governs the LMMA. The dina is legally recognized and restricts destructive fishing practices such as poison fishing and beach seining, governs six permanent marine reserves, and oversees temporary closures of octopus fishing grounds and mangrove reserves. An elected body made up of community members, called the Velondriake Association, is responsible for enforcement of the ''dina" .
All permanent residents of villages within Velondriake are "de jure" members, with the right to participate in the association and benefit from its actions. The Velondriake General Assembly consists of elected representatives from each of the 25 villages within the LMMA; larger villages, such as Andavadoaka, have six representatives, while smaller villages have only two or three. Velondriake is divided into three graphical regions, or "vondrona", each with an elected cabinet (president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, and advisers). Finally, the three regions are led by a central committee of about 20, called the "foibe", which has elected cabinet members as well.
Velondriake is supported by partner organizations Blue Ventures a UK-based marine conservation NGO that has been working in Velondriake and throughout Madagascar since 2003, the Wildlife Conservation Society and the University of Tulear.
Other activities implemented within the LMMA include aquaculture of sea cucumbers and seaweed to supplement local incomes and provide alternative livelihoods to local fishers; fisheries monitoring research; provision of family planning and reproductive health services; education about maternal, child and community health; as well as formal and informal youth environmental education programs supported by the MacArthur Foundation and UNICEF.