24 Prior to 1985, forest policy was mainly expressed through legislative acts. The first comprehensive National Forest Policy was
adopted in 1985. The national tree cover objective was set at 40 percent 15 percent protection and 25 percent production and the policy promoted the principles of sustainable forest management; measures were proposed for controlling shifting
cultivation, forest fires and forest clearance by ethnic minorities. Restoration for industrial wood production was stressed. A resettlement programme was also created for forest dwellers which allowed them to engage in commercial restoration
of degraded forest. However, the policy could not address deforestation, and following severe floods in 1988, a logging ban in natural forests was introduced in 1989. The 7th National Economic and Social Development Plan reversed the target
forest cover of 40 percent aimed at timber production with one that allocated 25 percent of forests for protection and 15 percent for production. While the policy and related instruments favour protection and conservation, decentralization
and public participation in policy planning and management of natural resources remain constrained. Nevertheless, in 1991 the RFD developed a Community Forestry Bill to facilitate local community involvement in forest management. The
bill, despite several revisions, has never been approved, because of amendments made to it that would ultimately lead to the eviction of thousands of forest-dwelling communities. This failure has contributed to and partly explains the continued
conflicts between people and authorities over forest-use rights and the lack of any increase in the country’s forest cover.
3.4.7 Viet Nam
Viet Nam has built a substantial reputation for its forest restoration work. In the 1950s, it carried out scattered tree planting, and it has been claimed that between 1960 and 1985, about 3.6 billion trees were planted. In 1975, the World
Food Programme, among its various programmes, also provided material for developing 450 000 ha of plantations; farmers were allowed to choose their own species for their smallholdings. In the 1990s, two major forest restoration programmes
were initiated. Program 327 also called the Greening the Barren Hills Program rehabilitated open lands and barren hills, and protected existing forests so natural regeneration could restore the sites. This resulted in about 400 000 ha of new
plantations and 300 000 ha of regenerated forests; this work was pursued in integration with rural development Sikor and Apel 1998. In 1998, the country initiated the 5MHRP and this lasted till 2010. Close to 1.2 million ha of protection
forests and special-use forests were restored, as well as about 0.5 million ha of production forest plantations. As a result, forest cover increased from 33.2 percent in 1999 to 35.8 percent in 2003, and to 44.0 percent in 2010 FAO 2010 a,b.
The forest restoration techniques included several forms of plantations, agroforestry and rehabilitation of natural forests through natural regeneration and enrichment planting. Many reasons have been provided for the exceptional success in
Viet Nam Box 10. A key reason appears to be because of the emphasis given to ensuring participation by local people, involving them in planning and ensuring they received financial benefits from their work. Success is also likely to have been
enhanced because of the strong interest and monitoring by officials in provincial and national agencies.
Box10.ReasonsforthesuccessofforestrestorationworkinVietNam
• The social benefits included additional cash income and savings for local people, resettlement and training in restoration techniques, together with improvements in their livelihoods and stable prices for wood.
• The restoration work involved active participation of local people and the authorities, active involvement and support of households, and strong interest from national authorities.
• Close monitoring by provincial managers and Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development officials. • The use of appropriate techniques and adequate and timely funding.
• The investment method for afforestation was in line with prevailing natural and socio-economic conditions.
Source: De Jong et al. 2006
reclaiming of encroached forest reserves. • 1978-1987 – planting trees for fuelwood.
• 1987-1992 – development of eucalypt plantations for pulp production by large private companies. • 1993-1998 – restoration work to cover watershed conservation and degraded forests.
• 1999 onwards – rubber was introduced early, but its planting was expanded through a new programme
launched by the Department of Agriculture in 2004; timber from old rubber trees meets the needs of the furniture industry substantially.
• 1999-2005 – promotion of the role of the private sector and local communities in forest restoration; government- funded plantations afforestation, restoration by forest concessionaires, Forest Industry Organization etc. have
reached about 1.1 million ha; restoration through social forestry was promoted in the Northeastern region with eucalypts, neem, Pterocarpus, acacia and teak.
Source: Wongpakattanawong et al. see p. 149
25 Forest restoration in Viet Nam has been successful owing to well-developed forest policies, other relevant policies, legislation
and effective enforcement agencies. Some of the relevant policies are highlighted in Box 11. Initially the ‘forest zoning and maintenance system’ which is equivalent to ‘passive reforestation’ Lamb and Gilmour 2003 provided the basis for
protection and natural regeneration in the 1950s. Viet Nam’s forest restoration efforts have been translated into two major projects, the Program 327 and the 5MHRP. The success of the projects was preceded by re-organization of the state forest
enterprises, along with the classification of forests into conservation special-use, protection and production categories. The revisions to the land laws allowed for allocation of land to households and individuals for sustainable forest production.
Revisions in investment policies, credit and tax systems are being made to improve the environment for developing forestry- based enterprises by individuals and private companies.
Overall, Viet Nam has been able to move towards greater participation of people in forestry, increasing plantation area and strengthening timber-processing industries. In the process, forestry has become an important economic sector which
is contributing to higher employment, livelihood improvement and reduction in poverty. The trend for forestry in Viet Nam appears to take the following course FSIV 2009:
• Plantations emerging as the main source of timber, while natural forests are increasingly targeted for protection; • Forestry shifting from production of wood to a variety of value-added products and ecosystem services; and
• Shifting from state control and public forestry to people’s forestry with empowerment of local bodies in forestry- related production and trade.
In summary, the technical aspects of forest restoration, from protecting and allowing natural regeneration to proceed in natural forests, to rehabilitating denuded lands with exotics and indigenous species have been reasonably well developed
across the region. In fact, in countries like the Philippines, innovative new techniques such as ANR have been developed. Likewise, the coppicing system of regrowth that is prevalent in the drier areas such as Nepal provides an easy option to
regenerate degraded sites with minimal interventions. Nevertheless, there are still some drawbacks in the choice of species, their genetic quality and plantation establishment techniques.
However, the difficulties surrounding these technical issues seem marginal when compared with the problems associated with policies, institutions and social issues required for dealing with forest restoration. While the commitment to reverse
forest loss and degradation might remain high among professional staff, it is not always translated into action. The crucial policy issues appear to be related to tenure and equity, especially with access to and use rights of natural forests. There
is now ample evidence that participatory planning is critical for all restoration undertakings. It is clear that China, Nepal, the Philippines and Viet Nam have developed supportive policies for forest management, particularly with the various
aspects of forest restoration. China and Viet Nam developed major restoration programmes to realize the benefits of policy revisions. Forest and land allocation policies provided clarity to ownership issues, which encouraged people’s participation
Box11.Majorpoliciesandinitiativesforinluencingforestrehabilitation
Policy and legislation have been quite conducive for forest restoration and they can be extended to FLR approaches. They are divided into two groups: a reclamation and reforestationafforestation, and b restoration of natural forests.
Some of the highlights include:
• Forest zoning, equivalent to passive restoration, has been in place since the 1950s. This has latterly been called ‘forest zoning and promoting regeneration’ and is regulated by technical rules on promoting regeneration and
enrichment planting e.g. QPN 21-98. • Program 327 1993-1998 and the 5MHRP Decree 661Q-TTg 71998 have had a major impact on forest
rehabilitation, leading to increase in forest cover of 43 percent, protection of soil and water resources, and flood control.
• Forest and forest land allocation policies Decree No. 021994CP have clearly defined the rights of land users, and have allowed allocation and lease of forest land to businesses, households and individuals with production
objectives. In the process afforestation of barren land has taken place. • When households invest in production forests, laws give them ownership and permission to decide on the
plantation period and method. • The National Forestry Development Strategy 2006-2020 was announced in 2007. It provided new guidance and
programmes for sustainable forest management; forest protection, biodiversity conservation and ecosystem services; forest product processing and trade; research, education, training and extension; renovating forestry
sector institutions, policy, planning and monitoring. • Laws have been formulated to allow individuals and organizations engaged in production forest plantations
access to preferential credit, and preferential tax if the work involves planting fallow land and denuded hills. • Nationwide regulation of PES Decree No. 9992010 has opened up opportunities to benefit from REDD+ and
other PES mechanisms.
Source: Phan see p. 167
