Nearly 80 percent of households in Madagascar rely on small-scale agriculture, but many farmers, particularly those living near protected areas, face isolation and limited access to affordable credit, and rely on unsustainable practices such as slash-and-burn farming. These practices, compounded by worsening droughts, cyclones, and other climate risks in the southeast, threaten food security and biodiversity. A team of researchers at Mitsilo lab are evaluating whether improving access to credit and knowledge through village savings and loans associations (VSLAs) can enhance the adoption of climate-smart agriculture (CSA) and strengthen rural livelihoods. Using a randomised controlled trial involving 2,515 households across 93 villages, the study is examining the effects of CSA and farmer business school training, as well as external credit injections into VSLA. Early findings show modest CSA uptake but increased off-farm diversification. DEEP Challenge Fund resources will enable extended data collection, continued monthly VSLA monitoring, systematic CSA field audits, and assessment of spill-over effects to provide evidence for sustainable agricultural transformation in Madagascar.