Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of offering assistance to conservation organisations in Madagascar for the protection of the environment from the effect of unregulated sapphire mining; and if she will make a statement.

The Government believes that environmental protection and regulation of extractive industries are vital for sustainable development. Madagascar receives assistance through a number of global programmes. These include the Global Environment Facility, which has numerous projects in Madagascar. In addition, we are contributing to improved governance of Madagascan mining through our support to the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative.