Summary
The rural population is very young, with well over half under the age of
16. Overall, the rural economy is characterized by multiple cash income
and subsistence sources, of which agriculture is the chief component
although accounting for only about one quarter of income. This is
despite the fact that according to focus groups, about 95% of the
population works in the agricultural sector. At present, land use by
people in the general mine area is gradually transforming the vegetation
cover of the landscape. It is estimated that the current national rate of
deforestation is about 1% per year.
Valley with the sub-village of
Berano near mine site
Belief in tradition and in the accumulated wisdom of the ancestors has
shaped Malagasy culture. Beliefs and customs remain a key part of
Malagasy life today. The table below lists the main types of cultural sites
that occur in the region of the Ambatovy Project.
Culture
Main Types of Cultural Sites in the Project Area
Site Category
Sub-Categories
Cultural Relevance
Fasana
Tranomanara
tombs
Feraomby
considered ancestral residences, their
displacement requires careful attention
to proper ritual
cemeteries
--
as above
Jiro
family prayer altar
ceremonial sites
Fisokona
communal prayer altar
nefarious
places
Tany Mahery
bad luck area
sacred
waterfalls
Riana
symbolize purity; place for offerings
Vatolahy
large raised stone commemorating an
important person or event of the past
Tsangambato
small raised stones symbolizing a tomb
other cultural /
archaeological
sites
Tanana Taloha
ancient abandoned villages
During surveys of the mine site, three sacred waterfalls, three
ceremonial centres, two symbolic tombs, and several ancient villages
were found. Of these cultural resources, however, only one sacred
waterfall is located within the actual mine footprint. In addition, about
eight kilometres east of the Ambatovy ore body, a hill named
Ambavahadivohitra has been identified as being a principal communal
prayer area (fisokona) used by the regional population as a whole.
Overall, there is a relative scarcity of cultural sites in the mine area.
Also, people have not been dependent on the generally stunted azonal
forest (see description below), but have focused on the thicker forests
farther away from the proposed mine area.
January 2006
Ambatovy Project — 6
