Biodiversity Conservation Project in Van Long, Viet Nam
Case Study C0228
[edit]
| Date | 2001 |
| Agency | Farmers' Association of Gia Vien Commune |
| Donor/support agency | GEF SGP |
| Project type | Implemented by agency |
| Context(s) | Protected area |
| Geographic coverage | Viet Nam |
| Locality | Gia Vien District, Ninh Binh Province |
| Biodiversity focus | Biodiversity |
| Development focus | Local community |
| Conservation goals | Conserve the biodiversity in the nature reserve of Van Long |
| Poverty reduction goals | Promote alternative and environmentally sustainable livelihoods for the local community |
Summary
The Biodiversity Conservation Project funded by GEF SGP in Van Long aims to promote the conservation and sustainable use of biological resources, and the riverine wetland ecosystem, of Van Long, a local nature reserve in Gia Vien District, Ninh Binh Province, Viet Nam. Due to its low environmental awareness and low standard of living, the local community has for a long time overexploited the Reserve resources for their daily livelihoods, resulting in biodiversity loss and deforestation. In addition, illegal hunting from local residents and outsiders is also a big problem in the area and a major threat to biodiversity conservation. Through its activities, the project aims to raise community environmental awareness, to establish a commune management authority and build capacity of the local communities and leaders in nature reserve management, and reduce community pressure on the Reserve resources by creating alternative livelihoods for the local community, hence contributing to poverty alleviation in the area.
Conservation impact
The following are some of the achievements of the project:
- training activities have led to an improved understanding and awareness of the local authorities and community about environmental issues
- the understanding and knowledge of environmental issues in general, and of biodiversity conservation in particular, of the project grantee organization staff were considerably enhanced.
Poverty reduction impact
The following are some of the achievements of the project:
- 33 households were trained in beekeeping and, at the end of the training, each house was provided a beehive through the project's revolving loan. This operation led to an increase in farmers’ income of 150,000 VND per household
- 19 ha of rice-fish and 32 ha for fish farming model were established through the revolving loan and given in use to the 91 households who had previously been trained to cultivate paddy rice-fish. This led to an increase in farmers’ income of 200,000 VND per household
- overall, the project budget for revolving loan programme for income-generating activities was 70 million VND, and the repayment rate was 100%.
Strategy for Conservation/Poverty Linkages
Provision of alternative livelihoods
Enabling local participation in policy-/decision- making processes
Reference 1
http://sgp.undp.org/index.cfm?Module=Projects&Page=ShowProject&ProjectID=3646
Related records above this one:
- Global Environment Facility (GEF) (Organisation O0026)