NTFPs and CWRs in Vietnam and the Mekong Delta presented by Ecosystems Specialist under the Climate Change Impact and Adaptation Study of Mekong ARCC Project during May 7 -11, 2012, in Vientiane, Lao PDR.

1. NTFPs and CWRs in
Vietnam and the Mekong
Delta
First ARCC Task 2 team meeting
Vientiane May 6-11, 2012

2. References
• An Overview of the NTFP Sub-Sector in Vietnam. Edited by Jason
Morris and An Van Bay. Forest Science Institute of Vietnam Non-timber
Forest Products Research Center. Project: Sustainable Utilization of
Non-Timber Forest Products Project Secretariat (2000).
• Non-Timber Forest Products sub-sector analysis-Vietnam. Mission
report prepared for IUCN Vietnam by Jenne de Beer, Ha Chu Chu,
Tran Quoc Tuy, and NTFP RC (2000)
• Vietnam second country report on the state of the nation’s plant
genetic resources for food and agriculture. Pham Thi Sen, Luu
Ngoc Trinh, Plant Resources Center.
• Importance of floating rice in the Mekong Delta. Nguyen Van Kien
et al. An Giang University.

3. PART I: NTFPs

4. Background
• About 12,000 plant species estimated to occur in Vietnam
• 7,000 species described; 1,000 plant species endemic to the country.
– 76 species giving aromatic resin
– 600 species giving tannin
– 93 species giving dyeing stuff
– 160 species giving essential only
– 260 species giving fat oils
– 1,498 species giving pharmaceutical products.
• The importance of NTFPs to rural households in Vietnam cannot be
overestimated.
• This applies in particular to the 8.5 million people of ethnic minorities, who
mainly live in upland areas.
• Despite sweeping socio-economic changes, NTFPs continue to play an
important role in the livelihood of ethnic minorities and rural households.

5. Value of Vietnam’s NTFP exports in 1996
Source: Ha Chu Chu, 1996
NTFP Total export value Share
(USD million)
Bamboo 37.6 2.5
Rattan 119.0 7.9
Cinnamon 95.6 6.3
Essential oils 312.5 20.7
Turpentine and Rosin 49.6 3.3
Mushroom 206.5 13.7
Pharmaceuticals 689.9 45.6
Total 1,510.7 100.0

6. Status and trends
• The development of NTFPs is faced with many difficulties due to heavy
deforestation.
• In recent years, a small increase of forest coverage and forest area has
been seen, but forest quality has been reduced.
– primary forests have been replaced by secondary forests;
– broadleaf forests have been replaced by bamboo and rattan forest;
– rich forests have become poor forests;
– multiple-level forests with high biodiversity and rich in NTFPs have become forests with
single tree species and few NTFPs.
• In addition, market instability, price fluctuations, and the lack of
investment incentives by government have also created obstacles.

7. • Interest in NTFPs is slowly growing during last decade (before
2000)
• This is to a certain extent reflected in MARD policy documents,
but inconsistently.
• However, the increased interest so far hardly affects the overall
research agenda in the country.
• The importance of NTFPs and the need to better understand
and improve local resource management are mentioned in
'Conservation & Development' project documents, but often with
minimal allocation of expert time to address the issues.

8. PART II: CROP WILD
RELATIVES

9. Background
• In Vietnam 1,300 species in 77 families described as
CWR; some have been used in crop breeding.
• Not much effort in studying diversity of PGRFA.
• No study on erosion of PGRFA.
• No monitoring and warning systems for loss of
PGRFA.
• Past 10 years, a significant number of plant species
in 56 families were identified as new discoveries to
VN and the world

10. Main reasons for erosion of PGRFA:
• New varieties being introduced for commercial
production.
• Deforestation and intensive land use.
• Natural disasters, and biotic and abiotic stresses;
• negligence and insufficient management

11. In situ conservation of CWRs and PAVs in PAs.
• In the national biodiversity action plan approved in
1995 (1996 - 2005), CWR and PAVs given high
priority for inventory, protection, conservation, and
sustainable use.
• Some efforts made with certain success.
• Protection in CWR and PAVs in PAs strengthened.
• The total number of natural protected areas
increased

12. Issues of In situ conservation in PAs
• Insufficient inventory and assessment of PGR diversity in the
country
• Indigenous knowledge has also not been well studied.
• Various CWRs or PAVs not included in the list for protection and
sustainable use.
• Small number of PAs, not sufficient to represent the diverse
topographical and ecological conditions of the country.
• Existing PAs management issues.
• Poor documentation and database;
• Limited information sharing between institutions involved.

13. In situ conservation: Outside PAs
• Some research projects carried out to set in situ conservation of
CWRs and PAVs outside PAs.
• A $4 million project of UNDP funded by GEF to protect 6
important crops including rice, taro, litchi-longan, rice bean,
citrus, and tea in 8 “gene management zones” in northern
mountains, northern midlands, and north-west mountains.
• Successes, nevertheless, were very limited and restricted to
only few locations.
• Not much efforts spent in the Red River Delta, Mekong Delta,
and North East area where agriculture intensification and
infrastructure development are taking place rapidly.

14. Ex situ conservation
• A national PGR network established; member
institutions mandated to collect and conserve crop
genetic resources.
• The Plan Resources Center coordinating the network
and maintaining the National Gene Bank with 20
members.
• About 40,000 germplasm accessions of 300 crop
species conserved ex situ, in vitro or seeds collected.

15. • The most important shortcomings in
sustaining the existing ex situ collections are:
- Improper management in terms of both
documentation and material storage.
- Inadequate classification of existing collections
into short-, medium- or long- term ones.

16. NTFPs and CWRs in the Mekong Delta
“Bird in the sky
Fish in the water
Whoever able
Is free to catch”
Was an old saying in the Delta.

18. NTFPs
• 30 years ago, natural resources were abundant in the
Mekong Delta.
• Harvest of natural resources contributed significantly
to livelihoods of delta inhabitants.
• Today, natural resources are becoming less and less
abundant

19. Drivers
• Loss of habitats and overexploitation, due to:
– Population growth and increasing pressures
– Intensification of human activities
– Simplification of ecosystems: highly diverse ecosystems are
being replaced by uniformly structured monocultures (e.g
irrigated rice, mangrove, forestry, intensive shrimp
aquaculture)

20. Key NTPFs in the Delta:
• Freshwater wetlands: bee honey, melaleuca oil, wild
edible plants.
• Mangrove forest: fish, shrimp, crab, fuel wood, bee
honey, edible plants.
Key CWRs in the Delta:
- Wild rice
- Floating rice
- Others?

21. Wild rice and Floating Rice in the Delta

22. Floating rice (Oryza Sativa L and Oryza prosative)
Floating rice
Source: Nguyen Van Kien et al, 2012
Distribution of floating rice before 1975
Source: Vo Tong Xuan and Matsui (1988)

23. • In 1970s, one of the main
staple food for South East
Asia.
• Tolerant of inundation up to 4m
for 3-5 months
• Stem can be 5-6 m long.
• Strong resistance to diseases;
not dependent on agro-
chemicals.
• Can grow 6-7cm/day to keep
up with flood water.
Extent of floating rice in An Giang province.
• 1.4-1.7 tons/ha in acidic area; Source: Nguyen Van Kien et al, 2012
3 tons/ha on good soils.
• Provides good habitat for fish

24. Wild rice (Oryza
rufipogon)
• About 1000 ha in Tram Chim National
Park and 150 ha in Lang Sen wetland
reserve.
• The poor used to harvest wild rice in the
wild for food before.
• Tolerant of deep inundation, drought,
acidity.
• Low yield; high quality rice.
• Good habitat for fish and birds.
• A farmer in An Giang province has
created 19 new strains of high-yield rice
by crossing-pollinating; 2 of new strains
created from wild varieties.

25. The bring home messages
• Not much information about NTFPs and CWRs in the
Mekong Delta.
• Delta systems are being simplified, resulting in rapid
loss of NTFPs and CWRs and less capacity to adapt
to changes.
• There are examples of initiatives using CWRs to
adapt to changes.

26. Typha angustifolia