Madagascar is the world’s fourth largest island with a total land area of 581,800 km². The country’s unique wildlife and biodiversity resources have attracted tourists and significant donor investments over the last three decades. In 2003, the Government of Madagascar committed to tripling protected areas and, by 2016, the country’s total coverage of protected areas had increased from 1.6 million to 7.1 million hectares.Madagascar adopted a new approach to protected area management in 2006.

Avoiding, reducing and reversing land degradation is essential for the food security of current and future generations, for the conservation of biodiversity and the achievement of climate targets. In the current context of increased competition over land resources, rising food insecurity, and inequalities, combating land degradation is also necessary to prevent and mitigate conflict and mass displacement, which risk to destabilise countries and entire regions.

The Future of Open Data flows from a multi-year Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Partnership Grant project that set out to explore open government geospatial data from an interdisciplinary perspective. Researchers on the grant adopted a critical social science perspective grounded in the imperative that the research should be relevant to government and civil society partners in the field.

In 2021, the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission in the Gambia, which enjoys a 90 per cent public approval rating, according to a 2021 survey, completed its three-year mandate. It submitted a 17-volume final report to the President in November 2021, which was made public on 24 December. During its tenure, the Commission held 23 public hearings and received more than 2,500 statements with support from a $4.7 million project implemented by UNDP and OHCHR.