Deforestation and Land Degradation's Nexus Impact on Ecosystem Services in Madagascar,

Deforestation and land degradation have significant impacts on ecosystem services in Madagascar's landscapes. A comparative study using remote sensing data to quantify changes in forest cover and soil erosion rates across different regions of Madagascar. Deforestation led to an average annual loss of approximately 1.5% forest area, with higher degradation rates observed in the central highlands compared to coastal areas. Land use policies need to be strengthened to mitigate deforestation and land degradation, particularly targeting regions with rapid degradation rates. Implement community-based forest management programmes and enforce stricter regulations on agricultural expansion into protected forests. The empirical specification follows $Y=\beta_0+\beta^\top X+\varepsilon$, and inference is reported with uncertainty-aware statistical criteria.