Opportunities and challenges in mobilizing finance to implement Vietnam's Forestry Development Strategy for 2006-2020


Book Description

This CIFOR Occasional Paper assessed opportunities and challenges in mobilizing finance to implement the Vietnam Forestry Development Strategy (VFDS) for 2006-2020. After 10 years of VFDS implementation, the forestry sector has witnessed many achievements




Vietnam Forestry Development Strategy


Book Description

The Vietnam Forestry Development Strategy (VFDS) is one of the country’s most important plans for the forestry sector. The strategic directions, objectives and solutions within it differ from time to time, depending on the political goals and perspectives of the moment, as well as the role that the forestry sector plays in Vietnam’s overall socio-economic development. Regardless of such changes, inheriting lessons learned, developing the next strategy off the back of the experience gained from solving previous challenges, and taking advantage of opportunities, are always the top priorities of the Government of Vietnam. This report is the result of a collaboration between the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) and the Vietnam Administration of Forestry (VNFOREST); it is intended to provide VNFOREST with input as they develop the new strategy. Based on secondary document research and stakeholder interviews, the report reviews achievements and challenges in the implementation of VFDS 2006–2020, as well as provides recommendations for policy makers to consider in the process of developing the new strategy. Research results show that, by 2020, Vietnam had exceeded a number of the goals set out in VFDS 2006–2020, including: (i) accelerating the growth of production value in the sector; (ii) increasing the export value of wood and forest products; (iii) increasing domestic wood production; and (iv) planting protection forest (PTF) and special-use forests (SUF). However, the forestry sector still faces many challenges when it comes to other key performance indicators, such as: (i) increasing the area of production forests (PDF) with certification of sustainable forest management (SFM); (ii) increasing large-diameter timber production; (iii) increasing revenue for forest environmental services (FES); (iv) securing forest and forest land for the purposes of allocation and leases; (v) reducing the number of poor households in forestry areas; and (vi) increasing the rate at which forestry workers are trained. Although some anticipated targets were not achieved, others were exceeded, for example: forest cover; reforestation after logging; reduction of forest protection violations; and scattered tree planting. That these goals were achieved or exceeded is the result of strong political commitment, policies trend-matching the market, improvements in central and local management capacity, the active support of international donors, and the involvement of civil society and the private sector. That some targets were not achieved is due to the challenges of implementing policy effectively, efficiently and equitably at grassroots level, lack of resources and funding, and some ambitious goals and targets not being realistic in the current economic, political and market contexts. Addressing these challenges requires a new approach and more effective economic, social and technical solutions. Development of VFDS 2021–2030 and the 2050 vision needs to consider the implementation achievements and challenges of the previous policy, as well as how to align with global trends, and balance these with the current political, economic and social development context in Vietnam. The direction of the new strategy must also be considered in the context of international requirements, to facilitate the mobilization of domestic and foreign financial resources to help modernize the industry, as well as enhance the forestry sector’s role and value in terms of poverty reduction, sustainable economic development and ensuring sustainable forest ecosystems.










The context of REDD+ in Vietnam


Book Description

Vietnam is acknowledged to be REDD+ pioneer country, having adopted REDD+ in 2009. This paper is an updated version of Vietnam’s REDD+ Country Profile which was first published by CIFOR in 2012. Our findings show that forest cover has increased since 2012, but enhancing, or even maintaining, forest quality remains a challenge. Drivers of deforestation and degradation in Vietnam, including legal and illegal logging, conversion of forest for national development goals and commercial agriculture, weak law enforcement and weak governance, have persisted since 2012 up to 2017. However, with strong political commitment, the government has made significant progress in addressing major drivers, such as the expansion of hydropower plants and rubber plantations.Since 2012, Vietnam has also signed important international treaties and agreements on trade, such as Voluntary Partnership Agreements (VPAs) through the European Union’s (EU) Forest Law Enforcement. These new policies have enhanced the role of the forestry sector within the overall national economy and provided a strong legal framework and incentives for forestuser groups and government agencies to take part in forest protection and development. Nevertheless, new market rules and international trade patterns also pose significant challenges for Vietnam, where the domestic forestry sector is characterized by state-owned companies and a large number of domestic firms that struggle to comply with these new rules.The climate change policies, national REDD+ strategy and REDD+ institutional setting has been refined and revised over time. However, uncertain and complex international requirements on REDD+ and limited funding have weakened the government’s interest in and political commitment to REDD+. REDD+ policies in Vietnam have shown significant progress in terms of its monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) systems, forest reference emission levels (FREL), and performance-based and benefit-sharing mechanisms by taking into account lessons learnt from its national Payment for Forest Environmental Services (PFES) Scheme. Evidence also shows increasing efforts of government and international communities to ground forestry policies in a participatory decision-making processes and the progress on developing safeguarding policies in Vietnam between 2012 and 2017 affirms the government’s interest in pursuing an equitable REDD+ implementation. Policy documents have fully recognized the need to give civil society organizations (CSOs) and ethnic groups political space and include them in decision making. Yet, participation remains token. Government provision for tenure security and carbon rights for local households are still being developed, with little progress since 2012.The effectiveness of REDD+ policies in addressing drivers of deforestation and degradation has not be proven, even though the revised NRAP has recently been approved. However, the fact that drivers of deforestation and degradation are outside of the forestry sector and have a strong link to national economic development goals points to an uneasy pathway for REDD+. The business case for REDD+ in Vietnam has not been proven, due to an uncertain carbon market, increasing requirements from donors and developed countries, and high transaction and implementation costs. Current efforts toward 3Es outcomes of REDD+ could be enhanced by stronger political commitment to addressing the drivers of deforestation from all sectors, broader changes in policy framework that create both incentives and disincentives for avoiding deforestation and degradation, cross-sectoral collaboration, and committed funding from both the government and developed countries.




Vietnam 2035


Book Description

Thirty years of Ä?ổi Má»›i (economic renovation) reforms have catapulted Vietnam from the ranks of the world’s poorest countries to one of its great development success stories. Critical ingredients have been visionary leaders, a sense of shared societal purpose, and a focus on the future. Starting in the late 1980s, these elements were successfully fused with the embrace of markets and the global economy. Economic growth since then has been rapid, stable, and inclusive, translating into strong welfare gains for the vast majority of the population. But three decades of success from reforms raises expectations for the future, as aptly captured in the Vietnamese constitution, which sets the goal of “a prosperous people and a strong, democratic, equitable, and civilized country.†? There is a firm aspiration that by 2035, Vietnam will be a modern and industrialized nation moving toward becoming a prosperous, creative, equitable, and democratic society. The Vietnam 2035 report, a joint undertaking of the Government of Vietnam and the World Bank Group, seeks to better comprehend the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead. It shows that the country’s aspirations and the supporting policy and institutional agenda stand on three pillars: balancing economic prosperity with environmental sustainability; promoting equity and social inclusion to develop a harmonious middle- class society; and enhancing the capacity and accountability of the state to establish a rule of law state and a democratic society. Vietnam 2035 further argues that the rapid growth needed to achieve the bold aspirations will be sustained only if it stands on faster productivity growth and reflects the costs of environmental degradation. Productivity growth, in turn, will benefit from measures to enhance the competitiveness of domestic enterprises, scale up the benefits of urban agglomeration, and build national technological and innovative capacity. Maintaining the record on equity and social inclusion will require lifting marginalized groups and delivering services to an aging and urbanizing middle-class society. And to fulfill the country’s aspirations, the institutions of governance will need to become modern, transparent, and fully rooted in the rule of law.




Opportunities and challenges for mangrove management in Vietnam


Book Description

In Vietnam, mangrove forests have been threatened by economic pressures and climate change. This report aims to analyze both opportunities and constraints for mangrove protection and management in Vietnam.The study found that local people appreciate the role that mangroves play in providing income, an attractive landscape and shelter from climate change related floods and storms. Many communities would be willing to contribute between USD 2-20 per year to a trust fund so as to protect their forests. A large number of policies and projects promote mangrove conservation activities. This has helped strengthen law enforcement, raised local awareness of the role and importance of maintaining forests, and restricted the conversion of mangroves to other economic activities. Government policies and development projects also provide capacity building, training and seedlings for mangrove reforestation activities at the studied sites. Additionally, new incentives such as payment for forest environmental services (PFES) are emerging as a potential source of finance to support mangrove protection and development in the future. Collective action for mangrove protection is widely recognized and promoted among study sites. People have self-organized strikes and protests to oppose converting mangroves to other economic purposes.Many policies and projects offer social and economic incentives for mangrove protection. However, they are impeded by insecure tenure, land grabbing, elite capture, inequitable benefit-sharing, and unclear responsibilities among government agencies at central, provincial and multilateral levels. Access to information on both policies and projects is difficult for local people. The monitoring and evaluation systems, incentives and disincentives designed by policies and projects have low enforcement and compliance. Policies and projects strongly emphasize and create incentives to replant mangrove forests, rather than to maintain and conserve existing mangrove forest areas. Incentives are also designed to compensate local labor costs for replanting mangrove or patrolling activities, rather than addressing the direct drivers of deforestation and degradation.Protecting mangroves requires a policy shift in land-use planning to address the drivers of mangrove deforestation and degradation. These drivers, in turn, respond to national and provincial economic development agendas, which focus on aquaculture expansion and migration. Cross-sectoral coordination also needs to be further enhanced to improve effectiveness in law enforcement. Enhancing local participation in mangrove forest protection and development requires a gender-sensitive approach and enabling conditions, such as well-enforced policies, accountable and transparent benefit-sharing, and inclusive decision making.




Realising REDD+


Book Description

REDD+ must be transformational. REDD+ requires broad institutional and governance reforms, such as tenure, decentralisation, and corruption control. These reforms will enable departures from business as usual, and involve communities and forest users in making and implementing policies that a ect them. Policies must go beyond forestry. REDD+ strategies must include policies outside the forestry sector narrowly de ned, such as agriculture and energy, and better coordinate across sectors to deal with non-forest drivers of deforestation and degradation. Performance-based payments are key, yet limited. Payments based on performance directly incentivise and compensate forest owners and users. But schemes such as payments for environmental services (PES) depend on conditions, such as secure tenure, solid carbon data and transparent governance, that are often lacking and take time to change. This constraint reinforces the need for broad institutional and policy reforms. We must learn from the past. Many approaches to REDD+ now being considered are similar to previous e orts to conserve and better manage forests, often with limited success. Taking on board lessons learned from past experience will improve the prospects of REDD+ e ectiveness. National circumstances and uncertainty must be factored in. Di erent country contexts will create a variety of REDD+ models with di erent institutional and policy mixes. Uncertainties about the shape of the future global REDD+ system, national readiness and political consensus require  exibility and a phased approach to REDD+ implementation.







Innovative Financing for Development


Book Description

Developing countries need additional, cross-border capital channeled into their private sectors to generate employment and growth, reduce poverty, and meet the other Millennium Development Goals. Innovative financing mechanisms are necessary to make this happen. 'Innovative Financing for Development' is the first book on this subject that uses a market-based approach. It compiles pioneering methods of raising development finance including securitization of future flow receivables, diaspora bonds, and GDP-indexed bonds. It also highlights the role of shadow sovereign ratings in facilitating access to international capital markets. It argues that poor countries, especially those in Sub-Saharan Africa, can potentially raise tens of billions of dollars annually through these instruments. The chapters in the book focus on the structures of the various innovative financing mechanisms, their track records and potential for tapping international capital markets, the constraints limiting their use, and policy measures that governments and international institutions can implement to alleviate these constraints.