Poverty and Environment Program

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Knowledge Capture and Dissemination Strategy

People's Republic of China

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Poverty Environment Net

Pilot Biodiversity Corridor Program for the Lam Dong Province of Viet Nam

Household survey in Da Sar Commune which involved the active participation of women

Environmental policy in Viet Nam identifies protection of biodiversity as a priority. The main response to biodiversity loss in Viet Nam is establishment of protected areas (PAs). Viet Nam has established 25 national parks, 60 nature conservation areas and 37 cultural, historic and environmental sites. These initiatives are significant initial steps towards protection of valuable biological diversity. However, PAs are small in size and not well distributed over the ecological landscape. So far the PA management performances have been mixed.

Local pig in Da Chais commune- animal husbandry has been identified by the communities as a means of livelihood

The modern theories of ecology such as island biogeography, metapopulations and minimum viable populations suggest that natural populations, communities and ecological processes are more likely to be maintained in landscapes that comprise an interconnected system of PAs. Therefore, the PAs need to be connected through biodiversity corridors to achieve the goals of conservation. Terrestrial biodiversity corridors (BCs) are linear strips of vegetation that provide continuous or near continuous pathways between protected areas. They constitute a strategy of biodiversity conservation to cope with the problem of habitat fragmentation arising out of economic activities such as commercial agriculture, tree plantations, urbanization, and infrastructure developments.

Protected peacock species in Da Chais commune

Since November 2005, ADB’s Poverty and Environment Program (PEP) is assisting the Provincial Government of Lam Dong in the implementation of a project to pilot approaches to and tools for the establishment of BCs that allows for the integration of protected area (PA) management, rural livelihood improvement and poverty reduction and support to environment-friendly resource use patterns. The 3 selected pilot communes of Da Sar, Da Nhim, and Da Chais in Lac Duong district are located in between the Bi Dup-Nui Ba National Park and the Da Nhim Watershed Protection Forest which belongs to the poverty concentrated Central Highland area of Viet Nam. They represent a portion of a larger corridor system intended to be established under the Greater Mekong Sub-Region Biodiversity Conservation Initiative (GMS-BCI) which would interconnect the Chung Yang Sin National Park in Dak Lak Province, the Bi Dup-Nui Ba National Park and the Da Nhim Watershed Protection Forest (Lam Dong Province), Ta Dung Special Use Forest (Dak Nong Province) and Cat Tien National Park (Lam Dong Province).

Settlement in Da Nhim Commune

The project involves the participation of the target communities in the identification of threats and necessary interventions for biodiversity protection and poverty reduction and in pilot-testing of these interventions on the ground. Pilot approaches include, among others, eco-tourism, forestry activities, agro-forestry, ecological farming, bio-prospecting, and ecological restoration. Special attention will be paid to minority groups and women in the implementation of these interventions for better management of BCs.

Orchid Sale in Da Sar Commune- the project involves teaching communities to do sustainable harvest of wild flowers

A baseline survey was carried out in January 2006 and results suggest that biodiversity in the project areas is still high. Forest destruction due to shifting cultivation and illegal logging, though existing, is not yet in an alarming state. Hunting and trapping is at present the biggest threat to the fauna. The survey also revealed that the socio-economic situation in the 3 communes is improving due to Government support through a number of development programs for ethnic minorities and those in the remote areas.

Consultations with the communities were conducted and they agreed to formulate biodiversity protection regulations and sanctions, and mark the biodiversity corridors on the ground. They have also identified animal husbandry (cattle and local pigs) as one of the income generating measures for the households and plan to establish a cattle revolving fund.