Introduction
The Sustainable Forest Management Activity focuses on reducing land-based carbon emissions and increasing carbon sequestration in Vietnam’s natural production forests and plantation production forests in seven provinces. These forests provide carbon, ecosystem, and economic services at local, national, and global scales. However, various political and economic drivers in the country and internationally have resulted in widespread forest degradation and constrained development outcomes. Despite national increases in overall tree cover, there has been a reduction in total area of natural forests and in forest quality in Vietnam. In response to these challenges, the Project leverages several approaches to sustainable land management to address the drivers of forest conversion and degradation in target areas. Engagement with the private sector and improved co-management by communities, local authorities, and the national Government are at the core of these activities. The Project’s activities will help Vietnam avoid carbon emissions from natural forest conversion; increase carbon sequestration through better management of plantation forests; and improve quality, diversity, and productivity of natural production forests.
Objectives
The Project has five related objectives that each contribute to achieving its goals:
- Objective 1 – Improve and expand community forest management: The project works with local government partners to strengthen the capacity of the government, forest owners and associations to implement forest management models and approaches and help build community capacity to participate effectively in forest management
- Objective 2 – Increase conservation friendly enterprises in forest dependent communities: Under this objective the Project aims to create additional and sustainable incomes for forest dependent communities by providing technical assistance for conservation-friendly value chain development. Activities to support value chain development will encourage conservation friendly enterprises (CFEs) to improve business performance and to create change in forest-dependent communities. This, in turn, will contribute to reducing natural forest conversion and will result in avoided carbon emissions.
- Objective 3 – Increase the functionality of law enforcement systems for forest crimes: Activities under Objective 3 are mutually supportive and aim to improve the legal and policy framework of the forestry sector at national and provincial levels and strengthen the capacity of the Project’s local partners and beneficiaries to implement forestry policies.
- Objective 4 – Improve forest production and forest management practices. Support under Objective 4 aims to help forest owners/farmers and partners in seven provinces improve forest management practices. By improving planting materials and introducing proper techniques for developing plantation forests and forest management, the Project will support harmful emissions reductions.
- Objective 5 – Mobilize domestic resources for forest management and protection. The project aims to strengthen the current mechanism for Payment for Forest Ecosystem Services (PFES) by making it more accurate and efficient and developing further mechanisms to mobilize sustainable funding for forest protection and development, such as payments for carbon sequestration and storage services. Crucial to this is the project’s support for the development of the domestic carbon emissions trading market, which is set to open in 2028.