Final Research Report for 3 years (2018-2021)
Social Research Group

1. GENERAL
1.2. Author(s) of the report
Hue Le, Dung Ngo, Toan Le, Trung Tran.

1.2. Group members
Group name: Social Group
Position

Affiliation and email address

Hue LeVNU-Central Institute for Natural
Resources and Environmental Studies(VNU-CRES)
thivanhue@gmail.com

Toan Le

VNU-CRES
toancres@gmail.com

Trung Tran

VNU-CRES
trung.tran.cres@gmail.com

Dung NgoVNU-CRES
ngocdung0908@gmail.com

12. RESEARCH
2.1. Abstract
The social group’s research aims to understanding bio-ecological nature conservation innorthern Vietnam from social perspectives. Desk study, key informant interviews andhousehold surveys were conducted to collect secondary and primary data. Field observations
and participatory mapping were also employed during the field research. During the processof data collection gender and ethnicity were given special attention and data wassystematically disaggregated by sex and age and disaggregated by disability, migratory status
and other contextually-relevant markers of equity. Based on the data analysis of 04 study
sites, we have discovered following important trends in the limestone Northern Mountain
Region of Vietnam. These findings have important implications for biodiversity conservationand development policies in the region.
The data analysis shows that on average, income from forest resources contributed asignificant proportion to the total household income. However, this source of income varies
among the 4 study sites. More specifically, the Tay ethnic group Cham Chu Nature Reserve in
Tuyen Quang province earned the least from forest making up 1% of the total householdincome and the Mong ethnic minority group of people in Du Gia National Park, Cao Bangprovince earned the next least from forest resources, accounting for 10% of the total
household income. Meanwhile the Dao ethnic group in Nam Xuan Lac Species and Habitat
Reserve earned the most from forest resources, but accounting for 16% of the total householdincome and the Dao ethnic group of people in Phia Oac - Phia Den National Park, Cao Bangprovince earned the next most from forest resources making up 17% of the total householdincomeThe data analysis demonstrates that income from forests correlated very well with poverty
rate. The higher the poverty rate exists the higher the income villagers earned from forests.
This is true for Phia Oac - Phia Den National Park, Nam Xuan Lac Species and Habitat
Reserve and Du Gia National Park where the poverty rate is much higher if compared withthat of Cham Chu Nature Reserve.
It is important to note that income earned from forest resources did no correlate with social
differentiation within the village. For the Tay ethnic minority group in Cham Chu Nature
Reserve, on average, the poor household group earned the least income from forest resources
compared with the middle and better-off groups of households. Meanwhile for the Mongethnic minority group in Du Gia National Park, the poor household group earned the mostincome from forest resources, followed by the middle group. The better-off households
earned the least income from forest resources. For the Dao ethnic minority group in Phia Oac- Phia Den National Park, the poor household group earned the most from forest resources,
followed by the group of better-off household; The middle household group earned the least
income from forest resources. The data also show an interesting fact that in the Dao ethnic
minority group in Nam Xuan Lac Species and Habitat Reserve, the better-off household groupearned the most from forests, followed by the middle household group; the poor householdgroup earned the least income from forests resources.

22.2. Background of the study
Research objectives of the social group➢ To better understand the current knowledge about the social, economic, cultural factors
and conservation and development policies related to biodiversity conservation in the
Northern region of Vietnam.
➢ To identify pressures and positive and negative impacts of development on biodiversity
conservation, benefits gained from biodiversity and ecosystem services, and shortcomings related to biodiversity conservation in the region.
➢ To provide policy recommendations to improve livelihoods and enhance biodiversity
conservation.
Subjects
Selection of sampled communities based on the following criteria:- Ethnicity- Close to protected areas and biodiversity hotspot- Accessibility to infrastructure- Livelihoods: focus on species villagers hunted, collected, used, or sold; - Different typesof development pressure such as mining, hydropower dam, industrial crops...
Methods of data collection
The following methods were used for data collection:▪ Desk study: focusing on related project documents/data/maps, national and local plansand policies and other related documents.
▪ Semi-structured interview with key informants; forest rangers, forest protection staff andofficial of the local government.
▪ Focus group discussion with direct beneficiaries/villagers whose livelihoods weredependent on forest resources and other local stakeholders. Women were interviewed
separately from men.
▪ Household survey with the head or spouse of the head of households that were mostdependent on biodiversity and ecosystem services to make a living. Questions covered
issues such as how much they were engaged in hunting and collecting non-timber forest
products; If they were what kind of species; how they used plants and animals collected
and hunted from forests and how much they earned from sales of those species of plants
and animals.
▪ Other methods, such as field observations and mapping, with the assistance andparticipation of local stakeholders and communities were also employed.
During the process of data collection gender and ethnicity were also given special attention anddata was systematically disaggregated by sex and age and, to the extent possible, disaggregatedby disability, migratory status and other contextually-relevant markers of equity.
2.3. Literature review of the study sites
The following paragraphs describe briefly the 4 study site and functional zones.
-

Cham Chu Nature Reserve3Cham Chu Nature Reserve is located within the administrative boundaries of 5 communes:
Trung Ha, Ha Lang, Hoa Phu of Chiem Hoa district; Yen Thuan and Phu Luu of Ham Yen
district, Tuyen Quang province.
Total area of Cham Chu Nature Reserve is 15,262.3 ha, of which the area located in Ham Yen
district is 6,168.4 ha and Chiem Hoa 9,093.9 ha accordingly. Cham Chu Nature Reserve support
a total population of 29,703 people, with 6,832 households living around it. The entire region
has 8 ethnic minority groups of people living together, of which 3 ethnic minority groups
account for the main proportion of the population being Tay, Dao, and Kinh.
Cham Chu Nature Reserve has a high biodiversity density of forest vegetation with endemic
species: Podocarpus
neriifolius, Fokienia hodginsii, Excentrodendron tonkinense,
Amentotaxus argotaenia, Anoectochilus acalcaratus, Paphiopedilum spp.... Those areadvantages and potentials of Cham Chu Nature Reserve. With an area of natural forest
accounting for 99%, Cham Chu Nature Reserve not only plays an important role in ecology andnatural environment, but also has the value of protecting the watershed of the river and stream
system flowing through Ham Yen and Chiem Hoa districts. They play an important role inregulating water sources for irrigation for agricultural production activities of communes,
districts and provinces in the downstream (Cham Chu Nature Reserve, 2019).
Although over the past time, Cham Chu Nature Reserve has made great efforts in conserving
biodiversity values and natural landscapes, the natural values of the Nature Reserve have been
degraded by impacts from humans and natural disasters, heavy rainfall, strong erosion, if thevegetation layer is destroyed, it will lead to increasingly degraded land. To preserve andpromote those values, it requires a synchronous and scientific management plan with theparticipation and support of many agencies and departments from the central, provincial to local
levels and especially the local people in the region.
In the village, people also trapped and shot chipmunks. Because the Forest Protection andDevelopment law restricted weapons and explosives, squirrel trapping was under control. In
recent years (2015-2016) the situation of logging to make cutting boards to sell to China. People
in the village were hired to cut hard wood for sale. Those who cut wood were not rich or poor.
They were from all classes. The price for cutting board for sale here was 150-200,000
VND/piece: 40cm wide; thickness: 6-7cm. So the tree must be very big. The tree must have adiameter of 1.1-1.2m. Tree should be 15-16m tall. This tree must be thousands of years old or
more.
-

Du Gia National ParkDu Gia National Park has a total natural area of 15,006.3 ha, located in 3 communes of 3
districts of Ha Giang province: Tung Ba (Vi Xuyen district); Minh Son (Bac Me district) and
Du Gia (Yen Minh district). The buffer zone has an area of 8,850 ha belonging to 6
communes of 4 districts: Du Gia and Duong Thuong comunes (Yen Minh district); Minh Son
and Yen Dinh (Bac Me district); Tung Ba (Vi Xuyen district) and Thai An (Quan Ba district).
This national park has an area of 14,068 hectares located on Dong Van Karst Plateau Global
Geopark, accounting for 93.7% of the natural area of the national park. Du Gia is about 70 km

4from Ha Giang city in the direction from National Highway 34, and 100 km in the direction of
National Highway 4C.
There are 5 main types of forest vegetation in the National Park: lowland tropical moist
evergreen closed forest growing on mountains at altitudes below 700 meters; Semi-tropicalhumid evergreen closed forest with medium mountains distributed at altitudes above 700
meters; And tropical moist evergreen closed forest on limestone mountains.
The flora here has 1,061 species of higher vascular plants of 6 plant branches (accounting for85.71% of the number of branches in Vietnam). The most diverse are magnolia species with
950 species (accounting for 89.54%), ferns with 88 species (accounting for 8.29%), pine with
12 species (accounting for 1.13%), Licopdiophyta with 9 species (accounting for 0,85%), therest is Psilotophyta and Equisetum ramosissimum. There have also been identified 202 plantfamilies (accounting for 53.44% of the whole Vietnam) such as orchids with 65 species(accounting for 6.13%); trivalve has 46 species (accounting for 4.34%); coffee has 45 species(accounting for 4.24%); mulberry has 39 species (accounting for 3.68%); daisy family has 33
species (accounting for 3.11%); Cinnamomum camphora family has 26 species (accounting for2.45%); legume and grass family with 25 species (accounting for 2.36%); the Araceae family
has 22 species (accounting for 2.07%); Orange family has 17 species (accounting for 1.6%)(Du Gia National Park, 2018).
In terms of fauna, the national park is home to 318 species of terrestrial vertebrates, including
72 species of mammals, 162 species of birds, 84 species of reptiles and amphibians. Amongthem there are 35 rare species, especially the snub-nosed langur which is one of the 25 mostendangered primate species globally. This is a restricted endemic specieendemic species,
distributed only in a few provinces in the Northeast of Vietnam. Currently, the population ofsnub-nosed langurs has about 108-113 individuals, accounting for nearly 50% of the total
number of snub-nosed langurs in Vietnam. In addition, among the recorded reptiles andamphibians, there are 13 rare species such as earth dragons, geckos, striped snakes, Impressed
Tortoise (Manouria impressa), thorn tortoises, common dry snakes, kraits, Chinese cobras, bigheaded turtle, striped frog, Theloderma corticale, Quasipaa verrucospinosa.
Most of the people's livelihoods still depended on the forest such as logging, hunting and illegal
trading of wild animals. Since 2016, the exploitation of forest resources has been less due tothe support of the Payment for Forest Environmental Services program. Although the level of
support received is not much, the villagers' awareness of forest management and protection has
been enhanced. Many species of animals in the forest were still illegally exploited and used by
local people. The following species were encountered while the field work was being
conducted: birds, wild pigs and dogs, and squirrel, among other.
In addition, the research team also recorded a number of forest products such as timber andnon-timber forest products that local people still harvested and used such as bamboo shoots,
vegetables, and forest roots for food; all kinds of bamboo, all kinds of wood… for sale andhouse building.

5-Phia Oac – Phia Den National Park

Phia Oac - Phia Den National Park is a national park and special-use forest located in 5
communes of Nguyen Binh district, Cao Bang province. This used to be a resort discovered andbuilt by the French from the early 20th century. Established on January 11, 2018 on the basisof the entire area of the former nature reserve. The national park has an area of 10,245.6 ha, of
which 4,035.5 ha is a strictly protected area. Phia Oac - Phia Den is home to 352 species ofplants, 58 species of rare and endangered animals. It is also home to 66 species of butterflies(Phia Oac Phia Den National Park , 2019).
Phia Oac - Phia Den National Park has a total natural area of 10,593.5 ha, including 8,146.6 haof natural forest in 5 communes of Nguyen Binh district, Cao Bang province: Thanh Cong,
Quang Thanh, and Phan Thanh, Hung Dao and Tinh Tuc town. The entire area of the nationalpark is located in Non Nuoc Cao Bang Geopark which was recognized by UNESCO as a Global
Geopark on April 12, 2018. Located 240 km from Hanoi capital along provincial road 212 and
76 km from Bac Kan city along provincial road 212 and national highway 3, 73 km from Cao
Bang city along provincial road 212 and national highway 34, and 30 km from Nguyen Binh
town along provincial road 212 (Phia Oac Phia Den, 2020).
The national park is divided into 3 main subdivisions which are strictly protected zone;
ecological restoration and administrative service zones. The strictly protected zone covers an
area of 4,035.5 ha, in sub-zones 338 and 352 in Thanh Cong commune; sub-zone 333, 334
Quang Thanh commune; sub-zones 327, 337 in Phan Thanh commune; and sub-zones 321 and
322 in Tinh Tuc town.
There is an ecosystem of closed evergreen tropical forests and a medium mountain subtropicalforest ecosystem; dwarf forest ecosystem, also known as "moss forest", a type of forest of
temperate climate typical of North Vietnam with many endemic, endangered and rare speciesof flora and fauna. In addition, the buffer zone has an area of 8,276.1 ha located in 6 communes
and 1 town. The highest peak in the nature reserve is the 1931 m high Phia Oac peak, also thehighest mountain in the Ngan Son-Yen Lac arc.
Every year, there are still a number of violations of deforestation, clearing and shifting
cultivation. In the past two years, there have been about 10 violations of the practice of slashand-burn cultivation, expanding the area planted with trees such as tobacco and galangal. In thecases of violations, the most violating households encroached 2000m2 and the least violating
hosueholds 500m2. When an incident occurred, the commune cooperated with the Special-use
Forest Management Board to consider and handle the case. In 2020 2-3 cases were procecuted.

-

Nam Xuan Lac Nature Reserve

Nam Xuan Lac Species and Habitat Reserve was approved by the People's Committee of Bac
Kan province according to Decision No. 342/QD-UB dated March 17, 2004 with a total natural

6

area of 1,788 ha located in the two villages of Na Da and Ban Khang, Xuan Lac commune, Cho
Don district, Bac Kan province.
On January 14, 2014, the People's Committee of Bac Kan province issued Decision No.
109/QD-UBND approving the planning for conservation and sustainable development of Nam
Xuan Lac Species and Habitat Reserve, Bac Kan province for the period 2013- 2020. According
to the decision, the Nature Reserve has an area of 4,155.67 ha, of which the Strict Protection
Zone is 2,552.50 ha; Ecological restoration zone 1,586.12 ha; Service - administrative zone
9.04 ha; The inner buffer zone is 8.01 ha, located in communes: Xuan Lac, Ban Thi and Dong
Lac, Cho Don district. The outer buffer zone is 16,371.53 ha located in 4 communes: Xuan Lac,
Ban Thi, Dong Lac and Yen Thinh, Cho Don district (Nam Xuan Lac Nature Reserve, 2019).
Nam Xuan Lac Species and Habitat Reserve has 653 species of higher vascular plants belonging
to 440 genera, 142 families, and 5 phyla, of which 54 rare and precious species are recorded in
Decree No. 32/2006/ND-CP; 50 species are recorded in the Red Book of Vietnam in five years;
9 species are listed in the IUCN Red List. Some rare plant species such as Burretiodendronhsienmu, Garcinia fragraeoides, Fernandoa spp... Paphiopedilum spp. and some other precious
medicinal species such as: Codonopsis javanica, Morinda officinalis, Spatholobus suberectus(Nam Xuan Lac Nature Reserve, 2016).
According to the survey results, the fauna has recorded the presence of 29 species of mammals
belonging to 04 orders, 12 families; 47 species of birds belonging to 09 orders, 21 families and
12 species of reptiles belonging to 2 orders, 06 families, especially some species are recordedin the Red Book of Vietnam and the IUCN Red List. Some species are especially rare andprecious such as: Black monkey, Assam Macaque (Macaca assamensis) Bengal Slow Loris(Nycticebus bengalensis), Pygmy Slow Loris (Nycticebus pygmaeus), Sun Bear (Helarctos
malayanus), White-eared Night Heron (Gorsachius magnificus).
The PFES program starts from 2019 for protection and production forests and community
forests. People here lived by cutting wood. In the past, they lived on the forest. Now young
people go to work in the factories. Now, the relationship between a boy and a girl was very
complicated. Trucks transported all kinds of things: firewood, construction materials; forest
products and plows and harrows.
This year, there was a case of forest law violation. There were 5 young men belonging to poor
households and even middle-class households. There has been no notification of how it will behandled. If villagers wanted to cut wood to build a house, he/she must ask for permission. In
recent times, there has been a conflict in the community because the boundary of thehousehold's forest land was not clear. The cadastral officer brought the machine to measure to
redefine the boundary and resolved the conflict. There was 1 case in 2021. In the past, there
was not any case.
2.4. Group’s purpose and subjects
Brief description of purpose/objective and subjects of research group➢ Objective 1: To better understand the current knowledge about the social, economic,
cultural factors and conservation and development policies related to biodiversity
7

conservation in the Northern region of Vietnam.
➢ Objective 2: To identify pressures/threats as well as positive and negative impacts ofdevelopment policies on biodiversity conservation.
➢ Objective 3: To provide policy recommendations to improve livelihoods and enhancebiodiversity conservation.
2.5. Materials and methods
Detailed description of methods and materials used for the study of research group.
Additional information can be presented in Annexes.
Key informant interviews
07 key informant interviews were conducted in Tuyen Quang province.
08 key informant interviews were conducted in Ha Giang province.
20 key informant interviews were conducted in Cao Bang province.
12 key informant interviews were conducted in Bac Kan province.
Focus group discussions
02 focus group discussions (14 participants) were conducted in Tuyen Quang province, and 02
focus group discussions (18 participants) were conducted in Ha Giang province
02 focus group discussions (14 participants) were conducted in Cao Bang province and 02 focus
group discussions (18 participants) were conducted in Bac Kan province.
The topics covered by focus group discussions were about the history of socio-economic
development and natural resources management and exploitation in the study sites, key
milestones of socio-economic development, changes in forest resources/species and impacts on
biodiversity conservation.
Household interviews✓ A sample of 51 households (Tay ethnic minority group) in Nam Luong village, Phu Luu
commune, at the Cham Chu Nature Reserve, Tuyen Quang province were selected forhousehold interviews. The data entry from the interviews into the SPSS database wascompleted. The team is presently in the process of analyzing the data.
✓ A sample of 50 households (Mong ethnic minority group) in Lung Cang village, Ngoc
Minh commune, at the Du Gia National Park site, Ha Giang province were selected forhousehold interviews. The social team is now in the process of entering the data fromthe household interviews into the SPSS program.
✓ A sample of 50 households (Dao ethnic minority group) Bang Tong Village, Thanh Cong
commune, Nguyen Binh District, Cao Bang Province were selected for householdinterviews. The data entry from the interviews into the SPSS database is being done.
✓ A sample of 46 households (Dao ethnic minority group) in Keo Nang Village, Ban Thi
commune, Cho Don district, Bac Kan Province were selected for household interviews.
It is important to note that the entire village has 46 households and all of the village’s
households were included into the sample.
✓ After the primary data were collected the social team entered the data into the SPSS
program for analysis.

82.6. Results and discussions
2.6.1. Overview of the socio-economic data in 04 study sites
This summary provides key socio-economic development and conservation data collected fromthe 4 study sites.
Table 1. Key socio-economic development and conservation data collected from the 4 study
sites.
Cham Chu
Du GiaNatureNational
Reserve
Park
Criteria
Nam Luong
Lung Cang
Village (n=51)(n=50)
Ethnicity
Tay
Mong
Average number of 4.9
5.54
persons perpersons/house persons/house
household
hold
hold

Phia Oac – Phia
Den NationalPark
Ban Tong(n=50)
Dao
4.7
persons/household

Nam Xuan Lac
Species & Habitat
Reserve
Ban Thi(n=46)
Dao
4.0
persons/household

Education level ofthe household headNot go to school

15.70%

14%36%

41.30%

Elementary school

41.20%

46%

24%

33%

Secondary school
High school
Cultivation land
(ha/household)
Forest area underhouseholdmanagement

31.40%
9.80%
1.66
ha/household

24%
6%
3.68
ha/household

20%
10%
0.62
ha/household

23.90%
2.20%

0.0027ha/household

0.00032
ha/household

19.13
ha/household

VND
161,000,000/h
ousehold/year
15%

VND
VND
14,229,400/h 41,149,641/houseousehold/year
hold/year
58%
80%

VND
71,696,804/household/year
56.50%

11.80%
2%
3.90%
2%
3.90%
VND
2,057,353/household

28%
8%
16%
2%
2%
VND
6,501,680/ho
usehold

12%
2%
10%
0%
0%
VND
10,073,480/household

21.70%
2.20%
10.90%
8.70%
0%
VND
11,539,630/househol
d

1%

10%

17%

16.16%

Average income ofhousehold per year
Poverty rate (%)
Number ofhouseholds facing
food shortage (%)
1 month
1-2 months
2-3 months
4-5 months
more than 6 months
Income from forest(VND/household)Income from forestout of total

0.58 ha/household
4.76 ha/household

9Criteria

Cham Chu
NatureReserve
Nam Luong
Village (n=51)

Du GiaNational
Park
Lung Cang(n=50)

Phia Oac – Phia
Den NationalPark
Ban Tong(n=50)Nam Xuan Lac
Species & Habitat
Reserve
Ban Thi(n=46)

0VND/househ
old

VND
1,800,000/ho
usehold

VND
80,440/household

VND
1,152,413/household

0%

3%

0.10%

1.60%

64%

46.70%

3.70%

16.10%

13

28

household income(%)
Income from PFES(VND/household)Income from PFES
out of total
household income(%)
Closed canopy
forest cover (%) in
2017
Bush, low grasscover (%) in 2017
Number of cases
breaching the forest
protection law in2017
Diversification of
livelihood(occupations/jobs
create incomes)
Number of females
headed households
Number of people
living in the female
headed household
Diversification of
livelihood(occupations/jobs
create incomes) of
the female headedhouseholds
Total income of all
females headedhouseholds(VND/year)
Average income ofhouseholds withfemale heads(VND/year)

30

26

43

37

14

4

6

12

68

16

26

46

23

17

20

17

2,450,335,000

285,900,000

426,940,000

454,276,075

36,034,338

17,868,750

16,420,769

9,875,567

2.6.1. Key findings/trends in the Northern mountainous region
Based on analyzed data collected at 04 study sites, we have discovered following important
trends in the limestone Northern Mountain Region of Vietnam. These findings will have10

several important implications for biodiversity conservation and development policies in theregion.
❖ The data analysis shows that on average, income from forest resources contributed asignificant proportion to the total household income. However, this source of income varies
among the 4 study sites. More specifically, the Tay ethnic group Cham Chu Nature Reservein Tuyen Quang province earned the least from forest making up 1% of the total householdincome and the Mong ethnic minority group of people in Du Gia National Park, Cao Bangprovince earned the next least from forest resources, accounting for 10% of the total
household income. Meanwhile the Dao ethnic group in Nam Xuan Lac Species and Habitat
Reserve earned the most from forest resources, but accounting for 16% of the total householdincome and the Dao ethnic group of people in Phia Oac - Phia Den National Park, Cao Bangprovince earned the next most from forest resources making up 17% of the total householdincome (See Figure 1 and 2 below).
Figure 1. Mean cash income per household in each ethnic minority group in 4 study
sites (Unit VND)
14,000,000
11,539,630

12,000,000

10,073,480

10,000,000
8,000,000

6,501,680

6,000,000
4,000,000
2,000,000

2,057,353

0

Tay Ethnic Group, Mong Ethnic Group, Dao Ethnic Group, Dao Ethnic Group,
Cham Chu Nature
Du Gia National Phia Oac Phia Den
Nam Xuan Lac
Reserve Tuyen
Park, Ha Giang
National Park Cao Species&Habitats
Quang Province
Province
Bang province
Nature Reserve, Bac
n=51
n=50
n=50
Kan Province
n=46
Income from forest (VND/household)11

Figure 2. Mean cash income in each from forest resources total household income among theethnic groups in 4 study sites (Unit VND)
17%

18%

16%

16%
14%
12%

10%

10%
8%
6%
4%
1%

2%
0%

Tay Ethnic Group,
Mong Ethnic Group, Dao Ethnic Group, Phia Dao Ethnic Group,
Cham Chu Nature
Du Gia National Park, Oac Phia Den National
Nam Xuan Lac
Reserve Tuyen Quang Ha Giang Province
Park Cao Bang
Species&Habitats
Province
n=50
province
Nature Reserve, Bac
n=51
n=50
Kan Province
n=46
Forset Income in total household income (%)❖ The data analysis also shows that income from forests correlated very well with poverty
rate. The higher the poverty rate exists the higher the income villagers earned from forests.
This is true for Phia Oac - Phia Den National Park, Nam Xuan Lac Species and Habitat
Reserve and Du Gia National Park where the poverty rate is much higher if compared withthat of Cham Chu Nature Reserve (See Figure 3).
Figure 3. Distribution of income from forest resources and poverty rate in 4 study sites(Unit VND)
70%
58%

60%

57%
50%

50%
40%
30%
20%

17%

15%

16%

10%
10%
1%
0%
Tay Ethnic Group, Cham Mong Ethnic Group, Du
Chu Nature Reserve
Gia National Park, Ha
Tuyen Quang Province
Giang Province
n=51
n=50

Dao Ethnic Group, Phia Dao Ethnic Group, Nam
Oac Phia Den National
Xuan Lac
Park Cao Bang province Species&Habitats Nature
n=50
Reserve, Bac Kan
Province
n=46

Income from Forest (% of total household income)Poverty rate (%)❖ It is important to note that income earned from forest resources did no correlate with social
differentiation within the village. For the Tay ethnic minority group in Cham Chu Nature
12Reserve, on average, the poor household group earned the least income from forest
resources compared with the middle and better-off groups of households. Meanwhile for
the Mong ethnic minority group in Du Gia National Park, the poor household group earned
the most income from forest resources, followed by the middle group. The better-off
households earned the least income from forest resources. For the Dao ethnic minority
group in Phia Oac - Phia Den National Park, the poor household group earned the mostfrom forest resources, followed by the group of better-off household; The middle householdgroup earned the least income from forest resources. The data also demonstrate aninteresting fact that the Dao ethnic minority group in Nam Xuan Lac Species and Habitat
Reserve, the better-off household group earned the most from forests, followed by the
middle household group; The poor household group earned the least income from forests
resources (See Figure 4 below)
Figure 4. Income from forest resources and social differentiation in 4 study sites (Unit
VND)
25,000,000

22,706,750

20,000,000

15,000,000

10,910,286
9,640,000
10,523,925

10,000,000

6,569,444
6,735,655

5,000,000

2,310,833.33

10,269,714

7,929,625

3,833,333

2,160,000
400,000
0
Tay Ethnic Group, Cham Mong Ethnic Group, Du Gia Dao Ethnic Group, Phia Oac Dao Ethnic Group, Nam
Chu Nature Reserve Tuyen
National Park, Ha Giang Phia Den National Park Cao Xuan Lac Species&Habitats
Quang Province
Province
Bang province
Nature Reserve, Bac Kan
n=51
n=50
n=50
Province
n=46

Poor household

Middle Household

Better-off Household❖ The gender issues were also paid due attention during the process of data analysis. The
results demonstrate income from forest resources correlated with gender in the study
sites. The Tay female-headed households in Cham Chu Nature Reserve earned theleast (more than VND 4 million) from forest resources and the Dao female-headedhousehold in Phia Oac - Phia Den National Park earned the most from forest resources(almost VND 17 million), followed by Nam Xuan Lac (almost VND 9 million) and
Du Gia (nearly VND 4 million). However, the Dao male-headed households in Nam
Xuan Lac Nature Reserve earned the most from forest resources (almost VND 13
million), followed by those in Phia Oac - Phia Den (more than VND 9 million) and Du
Gia National Park (almost VND 7 million). Those in Cham Chu Nature Reserve
earned the least of all from forest resources (almost VND 3 million).

13

Figure 5. Income from forest resources and gender in 4 study sites (Unit VND)
18,000,000

16,590,000

16,000,000
14,000,000

12,571,853

12,000,000
9,184,864

10,000,000
8,000,000

6,753,565

6,000,000
4,000,000

8,640,000

4,373,333

3,605,000

2,759,028

2,000,000
0Male headedhouseholds

Femaleheadedhouseholds

Male headedhouseholds

Femaleheadedhouseholds

Male headedhouseholds

Femaleheadedhouseholds

Male headedhouseholds

Femaleheadedhouseholds

Tay Ethnic Group, Cham Mong Ethnic Group, Du Gia Dao Ethnic Group, Phia Oac Dao Ethnic Group, Nam
Chu Nature Reserve Tuyen National Park, Ha Giang Phia Den National Park Cao Xuan Lac Species&Habitats
Quang Province
Province
Bang province
Nature Reserve, Bac Kan
Province❖ With regard to the age of the household, it is important to note that the income from forest
resources did not correlate with the age of the household heads if at all in the 4 study sites(See Table 2 below).
Table 2. Distribution of income from forest resources and the age of the household heads
Tay ethnic group in Cham Chu Nature
Reserve,Tuyen Quang Province
Forest income

Pearson Correlation

Forest income
1Sig. (2-tailed)N
Age of householdheads

Age of household
heads-0.006
0.965

51

51

Pearson Correlation-0.0061

Sig. (2-tailed)

0.965

14

N

Mong ethnic group in Du Gia National Park,Ha Giang province
Forest income

51

51

Age of household
heads

Forest income

Pearson Correlation

1-0.184Sig. (2-tailed)N
Age of household
heads

50

50

Pearson Correlation-0.1841

Sig. (2-tailed)

0.201

N

Dao ethnic group in Phia Oac - Phia Den
National Park, Cao Bang province
Forest income

0.201

Pearson Correlation

50

50

Age of household
heads

Forest income
1Sig. (2-tailed)N
Age of household
heads

0.056
0.700

50

50

Pearson Correlation

0.056

1

Sig. (2-tailed)

0.700

N

50

50

15

Dao ethnic group in Nam Xuan Lac Species& Habitat Reserve, Bac Kan province
Forest income

Age of household
heads

Forest income

Pearson Correlation

1

0.163

Sig. (2-tailed)

0.280

N
Age of household
heads

46

46

Pearson Correlation

0.163

1

Sig. (2-tailed)

0.280

N

46

46

❖ Income from forest resources did not correlate with the area of forest land owned by thehouseholds in the 04 study sites (See Table 3 below).
Table 3. Income from forest resources and area of forest land owned by households
Tay ethnic group in Cham Chu Nature
Reserve, Tuyen Quang Province
Forest income

Pearson Correlation

Forest income

Forest land area

1

-0.059Sig. (2-tailed)N
Forest land area

0.682
51

51

Pearson Correlation-0.0591

Sig. (2-tailed)

0.682

N

51

51

Mong ethnic group in Du Gia National Park,Ha Giang province
Forest income
Forest income

Pearson Correlation

Forest land area
1

.363**

16

Sig. (2-tailed)

0.010

N
Forest land area

50

50

Pearson Correlation.363**

1

Sig. (2-tailed)

0.010

N

Dao ethnic group in Phia Oac - Phia Den
National Park, Cao Bang province
Forest income

Pearson Correlation

50

Forest income

Forest land area
1

Sig. (2-tailed)N
Forest land area

50

-0.021
0.885

50

50

Pearson Correlation-0.021

1Sig. (2-tailed)

0.885

N

Dao ethnic group in Nam Xuan Lac Species& Habitat Reserve, Bac Kan province
Forest income

Pearson Correlation

50

Forest income
1Sig. (2-tailed)N
Forest land area

50

Forest land area
-0.029
0.850

46

46

Pearson Correlation-0.0291

Sig. (2-tailed)

0.850

N

46

46

2.6.2. Policy implications
This section discusses the current approaches and policies on biodiversity conservation in
Vietnam and Northern Mountain Region and how the findings will be translated in order tocontribute to design of appropriate policy and tools on biodiversity conservation and livelihood
improvements in the Northern Mountain Region in particular and in the whole country ingeneral.
17The previous and current policies
and approaches on biodiversity
conservation in Vietnam

Social research group’s findings in the 4 study
sites in Northern Mountain Region

The approaches and policies on The policies and approaches often do not take thebiodiversity conservation have been other factors into consideration. Those might affectmainly top-down and one-size-fit all. the way in which different social groups ofhouseholds use and manage forest resources suchas socio-economics, gender and ethnicity. Our
research in the 4 study sites found that other factors
such as ethnicity, gender, household classes andpoverty rate are very important factors that
influence policy enforcement on biodiversity
conservation.
Poverty is main cause of biodiversity
loss and degradation. Current
conservation approaches, policies, andprograms have applied pro-poor as
main approach.

Our research in the 4 study sites found that level ofpoverty among the 4 study sites and dependence of
local people on forest resources varies among thesites. Some better-off households earned morefrom forest resources if compared to the poor. Thisis case for Nam Xuan Lac National Park.

The approaches and policies on
biodiversity conservation aim toincrease the fees from Payments for
ForestEnvironmental
Services(PFES) to increase household income
andadvancebiodiversity
conservation.

Our research found in the 4 study sites that theincome from PFES makes up a very small
proportion to the total household income (ranging
from 0% to 1.6% out of the total householdincome).

Crop boom development contributes Our research in Cham Chu Nature Reserve
to deforestation and biodiversity indicated that the orange boom in the area hasconservation.
increased the forest cover trends and reduced thenumber of cases violating the Forest Protection andDevelopment Law over the last 36 years.
(Accepted and Published Paper to the VNU
Science Journal of this social group).
Increased forest land holding would Our research findings show that income from forest
increase income from forest resources resources did not correlate with the area of forestandimprovebiodiversity land each household holds.
conservation.
Biodiversity conservation policies andapproaches consider the local people
aroundtheprotected
earnedsignificant percentage of income fromforest resources and high dependence

Our research found that there were significant
differences among the studied communities. On
average, each Tay household in Cham Chu Nature
Reserve earned the least - less than 1% of the total
household total income from forest resources. EachMong household on average in Du Gia National
18

The previous and current policies
and approaches on biodiversity
conservation in Vietnam

Social research group’s findings in the 4 study
sites in Northern Mountain Region

on forests.

Park earned more than 10% from forest resources.
Finally, each 2 Dao household earned 16% and
17% in Nam Xuan Lac and Phia Oac - Phia Den
respectively.

Current biodiversity conservation Our research found in the 4 study sites femalepolicies and approaches consider both headed households had the lowest income from allgenders of household heads the same. sources compared with the male-headedhouseholds. Important as well is that femaleheaded household earned more from forest
resources and they also depended more forests.
2.7. Discussions
The social research group has provided new insights into the root causes of biodiversity loss,
which has has serious negative social-economic impacts and environmental impacts, and how
the biodiversity loss can be reversed and advanced in the future. We have collected theimportant baseline data on socio-economic development in the Northern Mountain Region,
which have not been taken into consideration by policy-makers to design policy and tools forbiodiversity conservation in the region. Our research findings show that only when thefactors that affect the ways in which different social of households groups use and manage
forest resources such as gender, ethnicity, and household classes are better understood would
incentives and appropriate institutions for biodiversity conservation be designed at the local
level.
There are many miss-leading approaches and theories on biodiversity conservation based onlimited understanding socio-economic factors. The social research group has published an
important paper on crop boom and biodiversity conservation in the Northern Vietnam. By
applying both qualitative and quantitative methods, the paper highlighted there wascorrelation between crop boom, which was orange development and biodiversity
conservation. Thanks to a significant percentage of income that orange development
contributed to the total household income, forest cover has significant increased and as aresult the number of illegal poaching cases and poverty rate decreased. The significant
findings of this study demonstrate that understanding of the causes and consequences ofagrarian change provides a useful blueprint for other studies of resource use and management
and biodiversity conservation in other regions of the country as well as in other countries andother situations
Our findings show that the other factors such as ethnicity, gender, household classes, andpoverty rate have also contributed to failure and successes of the implementation andenforcement of biodiversity conservation policies and tool in Northern Vietnam. It is of great
important to take those into consideration in the design of appropriate policies and tools forbiodiversity conservation and socio-economic development in the region.
19

2.8. References
Du Gia National Park (2018). Annual report on management, conservation and development of
biodiversity. Bac Me District, Ha Giang province. https://dantocmiennui.vn/dien-tich-rung-trongvuon-quoc-gia-du-gia-duoc-bao-ve-nho-giao-khoan-cho-cong-dong-dan-cu/192989.html. Accessed
15/12/2021

Nam
Xuan
Lac
NatureReserve(2016).
Naturalcharacteristics.
https://kiemlam.backan.gov.vn/portal/kbtnamxuanlac/Pages/2016-3-1/Khu-bao-ton-thiennhien-Nam-Xuan-Lacjhwsn4.aspx. Accessed 15/03/2021.
Nam Xuan Lac Nature Reserve (2019). Annual report on management, conservation anddevelopment of biodiversity. Cho Don District, Bac Kan province.
Phia Oac Phia Den (2020). Annual report on management, conservation and development of

biodiversity. Nguyen Binh district, Cao Bang province.

20

2.9. Publication and products❖ Paper published by the VNU Journal of Science: Earth and Environmental Sciences,Vol. 37, No. 4 (2021) 1-10. https://js.vnu.edu.vn/EES/article/view/4669

21

3. EMPOWERMENT OF YOUNG SCIENTISTS
3.1. Guiding principles for education and training
Brief description of regulations or guideline of the research group for young research
assistants.
▪

The team leader and key researcher provided tools and approaches and training to theyoung research assistants in the first year.

▪

The team leader and key researcher provided research ethics and safety to the young
research assistants.

▪

The team leader and key researcher provided trainings on designing questionnaires,
focus group discussion, key informant interviews to the young research assistants.

▪

The team leader and key researcher provided trainings on using SPSS and NVIVO tothe young research assistants.

▪

The team leader and key researcher provided trainings on conducting literature reviews
and writing papers to the young research assistants.

▪

The team leader and key researcher accompanied the young researcher assistants to thefield to conduct pre-testing the questionnaire, which were finalized later based on the
pre-testing.

▪

The completed survey tools, including the key informant interviews, focus group
discussion and household survey questionnaire were used for actual interviews in thefield by the whole team.

3.2. Achievement of each young scientist
The key achievement of research assistants and/or young scientists during the time of project
implementation and assessment of their progress are listed in Table 5.
Research
assistants and/or
young scientist
Vinh Nguyen(left VNU-CRES
for her PhD in
South Korea)
Thanh Nguyen(left VNU-CRES
for anotherministry)
Ly BuiDung Ngo

All products and results

The time of
project

Assessment

Conducted fieldwork
Conducted literature review andwrote the first paper for
publication in the VNU Journalof Science
Conducted fieldwork
Logistics support

2nd yearGood

1st yearGood

Conducted fieldwork
Provided logistics support for
the whole teamConducted fieldwork
Provided logistics support for
the whole teamEntered all data into the SPSS
and Nvivo program, which waslater analyzed.

1st year, 2nd and3rd years

Good

2nd and 3rd years

Very good22

Research
All products and results
assistants and/or
young scientist
Wrote a paper for the VNU
Journal of Science
In the process of writing thesecond paper for publication ina reviewed international journal(Appendix 2)
Toan Le
Conducted fieldwork
Entered all data into the SPSS
and Nvivo program, which was
was later analyzed.
Wrote a paper for the VNU
Journal of Science
In the process of writing thesecond paper for publication ina reviewed international journal(Appendix 2)

The time of
project

Assessment

2nd and 3rd years

Very good23

4. APPENDIX
Appendix 1. Paper was already published in the VNU Journal of Science

Original Article
Roles of Crop Boom (Orange) in Biodiversity Conservation in the Northern Limestone
Mountain Region of Vietnam
Ngo Ngoc Dung, Le Trong Toan, Tran Chi Trung,
Nguyen Thi Vinh, Le Thi Van Hue
VNU-Central Institute for Natural Resources and Environmental Studies,
19 Le Thanh Tong, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi, Vietnam
Received 6 September 2020
Revised 23 December 2020; Accepted 03 January2021
Abstract: This study examines the roles of crop boom (orange) in biodiversity conservation in
Cham Chu Nature Reserve, Tuyen Quang province in the Northern Limestone Mountain
Region of Vietnam. The results indicated that the local policy on orange development in
Tuyen Quang since 2000 has made positive contributions to both local livelihood
improvements and biodiversity conservation. On average, household income has significantly
increased (VND 161 million Vietnam/household/year), of which income from sale of oranges
made up 62% of the total household income. Poverty rate has been reduced by half during thelast 10 years. Therefore, the dependence of the local livelihoods on the harvesting of forest
resources has remarkably decreased, accounting for only 1% of the total household income.
Data analysis indicates that the trend of increasing orange area (from 7% in 1986 to 27% in2017) is related to the increasing forest cover in Cham Chu Nature Reserve (60.4 % of 1986
to 63.8% in 2017) and the decreasing trend of forested areas under human impact (11.3% in2007 to 3.7% in 2017). Notably, the number of cases of violation of the Law on Forest
Protection and Development has significantly decreased (from 66 in 2013 to 13 cases in 2017)
in the study area. The case of Phu Luu shows that commodity agricultural development has
had a positive impact on biodiversity conservation at the local level. Recommendations areprovided at the end of the paper as how to strengthen the linkages between commodity
agriculture and biodiversity conservation in the limestone mountains of Northern Vietnam sothat growth of rural incomes, poverty reduction, and biodiversity conservation can all takeplace.
Keywords: Crop boom, orange, livelihoods, forest, wellbeing, Tay people, Northernlimestone mountain region of Vietnam.

https://doi.org/10.25073/2588-1094/vnuees.4669

24

Appendix 2. Outline of the paper will be published in international journal
Forest environmental income in Northern Highlands Limestone Mountains, Vietnam:
household socioeconomic factors influencing forest use and management
Contents
Forest environmental income in Northern Highlands Limeston Mountains, Vietnam:
household socioeconomic factors influencing forest use ......................................................... 25
Abstract ................................................................................................................................. 25
INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................ 26
METHODS ........................................................................................................................... 26
Research setting ................................................................................................................ 26
Study sample...................................................................................................................... 26
Data collection .................................................................................................................. 26
Household characteristics ................................................................................................. 26
Data analysis ..................................................................................................................... 26
RESULTS ............................................................................................................................. 26
Forest products collected .................................................................................................. 26
Factors influencing forest environmental income ............................................................. 26
Relationship of overall household wealth to forest environmental income ...................... 27
Factors affecting income from forests ............................................................................... 27
DISCUSSION ....................................................................................................................... 27
CONCLUSIONS .................................................................................................................. 27
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................. 27
REFERENCE........................................................................................................................ 27

Abstract25

INTRODUCTIONMETHODS
Research setting
Figure 1 Map of the study area
Study sample
Data collection
Household characteristics
Table 1 Characteristics of the surveyed households.
Data analysis
RESULTS
Forest products collected
Table 2 Average cash income generation from forest-based sources in the Northern
Mountain Region.
Factors influencing forest environmental income
Sources of household cash income
Table 3 Sources of household cash income in the Northern Mountain Region.
Table 4 Comparison of forest income (FCI) households with non-forest cash income(non-FCI) households
Household age
Ethnicity
Gender (male/female headed households)
Household class (Better-off, middle, poor)

26

Relationship of overall household wealth to forest environmental income
Table 4 ANOVA of socioeconomic variables, comparing households ranked by cash
income sources.
Figure 2 Box plot of total cash income from forest based resources by income classes
Figure 3 Percentage of household cash income contributed by forest based sources byincome classes.
Factors affecting income from forests
Table 5 OLS regression with absolute forest income as the dependent variable.
Table 6 OLS regression with relative forest income as the dependent variable.

DISCUSSIONCONCLUSIONSACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

REFERENCE

Appendix 3. Reference in this report27