MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING UNIVERSITY OF ECONOMICS, HO CHI MINH CITY FULBRIGHT ECONOMICS TEACHING PROGRAM ------------- HOANG THI PHUONG TRINH SUSTAINABLE LIVELIHOODS AND FOREST RESERVES: A CASE STUDY OF THE COTU PEOPLE IN BHALEE COMMUNE, TAY GIANG DISTRICT, QUANG NAM PROVINCE MASTER OF PUBLIC POLICY THESIS HO CHI MINH CITY - 2015 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND TRAINING UNIVERSITY OF ECONOMICS, HO CHI MINH CITY FULBRIGHT ECONOMICS TEACHING PROGRAM ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ HOANG THI PHUONG TRINH SUSTAINABLE LIVELIHOODS AND FOREST RESERVES: A CASE STUDY OF THE COTU PEOPLE IN BHALEE COMMUNE, TAY GIANG DISTRICT, QUANG NAM PROVINCE Major: Public Policy Code: 60340402 MASTER OF PUBLIC POLICY THESIS SUPERVISOR Dr. RAINER ASSÉ HO CHI MINH CITY - 2015 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com -i- CERTIFICATION I certify that the substance of the thesis that not already been submitted for any degree and is not being currently submitted for any other degrees. I certify that, to the best of my knowledge and help received in preparing the thesis, I have acknowledged all sources of information and support. The study does not necessarily reflect the views of Economics University of Ho Chi Minh City or the Fulbright Economics Teaching Program.
Author Hoang Thi Phuong Trinh TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com -ii- ACKNOWLEDGEMENT Firstly, I would like to express my cordial gratitude to all people in three villages of Bhalee Commune, Tay Giang District, Quang Nam Province. This study would not have its final shape without them. This study is dedicated to all those highlanders, especially Mr. Bling Con, Mr.
Alang Man, and Mrs. Bling Thị Buoi, all management and administrative officials of Bhalee kindergarten, whose affectionate hospitality supported me throughout my three weeks of field research at very critical situations. I am also thankful to the management board and staff of Sao Nature Reserve, especially Mr. Ha Phuoc Phu, and Mr.
Dang Ba Loc for their valuable information, support and comments throughout the study. I give my special thanks to Mrs. Tran Thi Hong Thu, who facilitated all relationships with every person at the research site and supported my accommodation during my stay. She is also the person on whom I relied for whatever issue and question that I had.
I am deeply grateful to her valuable help. I am always grateful to my study supervisor Dr. Rainer Assé whose continuous guidance, valuable suggestions, and diligent encouragement from beginning to end of my study are main reasons behind its successful completion. I would like to thank all teachers and faculties in Fulbright Economics Teaching Program, who helped a lot in knowledge and experience as well as smoothing the conditions for my accomplishment of my study.
My family members, especially my father, deserve my acknowledgement, at most, for their incessant support and encouragement. Finally yet importantly, I express my gratitude to everyone who supported me directly and indirectly throughout my study. Hoang Thi Phuong Trinh TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com -iii- ABSTRACT This study, based on the DFID sustainable livelihoods framework, analyzes vulnerability contexts, identifies strengths and weaknesses of livelihood assets, and advantages and disadvantages in the access to livelihood capitals of the Cotu people in Bhalee, Tay Giang, Quang Nam upon the establishment of Saola Nature Reserve (SNR). The study finds that four out of five capitals including human, natural, physical, financial capital are remarkably poor among the Cotu while they have rather good social capital.
However, access to only one capital is not enough to cover for lack of the other four capitals. That is why people there are still very poor. Besides, since SNR establishment, almost all activities relating to forest are prohibited. Local people are no longer allowed to farm on some lands that they used to farm before.
There are a number of policies, programs, and projects supporting livelihoods of local people. However, it seems that such support cannot cover for all their losses and are not appropriate with their cultural practices. Besides, jobs are not readily available at the research sites as this is a remote area with low productivity. Furthermore, activities of improving livelihoods for local people have not been focused.
Low education with no other skills than simple and non-modern agricultural skills leaves local people no alternatives. As a result, the vulnerability contexts together with current policies make people’s lives more difficult and they have few choices other than doing illegal jobs relating to the forest. Therefore, in addition to suggestions including diversification of crops and livestock, transforming the structure of crop selections and livestock, increasing the support of cows, and pigs, the study also recommends continuing current favorable policies, programs, and projects and relaxing the strict conversation policies so that these policies are more suitable for current cultural features. Besides, in order to combine using nature resources together with protecting forest products, it is suggested that a model of forest co-management between local and conservation authorities with local people be created in the buffer areas of SNR.
Key words: livelihoods, ethnic minority, forest protection TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com -iv- CONTENTS CERTIFICATION. vi LIST OF CHARTS. vii LIST OF FIGURES. vii LIST OF TABLES.
vii LIST OF APPENDICES. Purposes and questions of the study. Subject and scope of the study. The structure of the study.
LITERATURE REVIEW AND IMPERICAL STUDIES. Framework of the study. OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH LOCATION. Social-economic status.
DESIGN OF THE STUDY. Data Collection Techniques. Primary data and sample selection. Data processing tools.
15 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail. Interpretation of findings. HHs livelihoods assets. Some findings of semi-structured interviews.
Discussion on livelihood assets. Current policies and impacts. Impacts of SNR’s policy. Response to vulnerability context.
Households’ expectation of policy support. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS. 48 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com -vi- ABBREVIATIONS ADB Asian Development Bank DFID Department for International Development FPD Forest Protection Department FPU Forest Protection Unit G1 Group 1 G2 Group 2 HHs Households NGO Non-government organization No. Number NTFPs Non-timber forest products Ord.
Order SLF Sustainable livelihoods framework SNR Saola Nature Reserve SUF Special Use Forest VBFSP Vietnam Bank for Social Policies VND Vietnam Dong WWF World Wildlife Fund TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com -vii- LIST OF CHARTS Chart 5. Average household headcount and main labor. Annual income and expense of both groups (Unit: VND). Income proportion of poor and near-poor household group.
Households’ expectation for livelihood support. 45 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 2. Sustainable livelihoods framework of DFID, 1999. 13 LIST OF TABLES Table 3.
Demographic characteristics at 3 villages of the study. Impact groups on forest. Indicators of household size and labor. Education status of household members.
Regular sick rate. Frequency of forest-related product exploitation. Possession percentage of living facilities. All programs, projects supports developing buffer areas at SNR.
40 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com -viii- LIST OF APPENDICES Appendix 1. Map of Tay Giang District with location of Bhalee Commune. Buffer areas of Bhalee Commune with SNR. Map of SNR Quang Nam.
Legal basis of SNR’s establishment. Current management decentralization at SNR Quang Nam. New rural program of Tay Giang with scheme “9 yes, 5 no”. 63 TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.
Policy Context Tay Giang, a high-mountainous district of Quang Nam Province, was established based on the separation of Hien district into Dong Giang district (The Eastern River) and Tay Giang district (The Western River) under Decree No. 73/2003/NĐ-CP of the Vietnam Government dated 20. Tay Giang lies in the northwest of Quang Nam Province, 190 kilometers from Tam Ky city in the northwest and 125 kilometers from Da Nang city on the west. The total area of the district is 902.97 km2, with population of 17,541 people, 3,884 households (HHs) with the percentage of poverty and near poverty up to 58.26%, per capita income of about 12.
Tay Giang, the district with the crucial importance of political, security and defense of the province and also of the nation, is the homeland of eight ethnic minorities with long cultural and historical tradition, especially the cultural specialties of the Cotu with 16,052 people, accounting for 92% of Tay Giang population and about 35% of Cotu population in Quang Nam (Statistical Department of Tay Giang, 2014). Bhalee commune, one of 10 communes in Tay Giang, is located next to the Saola Nature Reserve (SNR). The total area of Bhalee is 7,111. There are 556 HHs living there with a total population of 2,603 people.
Among them, poor and near-poor HHs account for nearly 57%. The Cotu there live mostly dependent on natural resources relating to the forest (Statistical Department of Tay Giang, 2014). Since the establishment of SNR in July 2012 under Decree 2265/QĐ-UBND of the People’s Committee of Quang Nam, the Cotu people’s livelihoods have changed, especially those who live in the buffer zone of the reserve. The new regulations of SNR, which are based on Decision 186/2006/QĐ-TTg of the Prime Minister dated 14.2006, prohibit local people from clearing forestlands for cultivation, trapping, snaring, and exploiting forest-related products.
Only shrunken forests, young forests (protection forests) and production forests are available for local people to manage. Moreover, they are allowed to cultivate in production TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com -2- forest but the exploitation of forest products in young forests is limited. These new rules, more or less, affect the livelihoods of local people and the traditional spirit of co-forest living of local people. The Cotu plant rice, maize, and cassava - just enough for daily necessities; while collection of forest-related products help them cover other expenses.
Forest-related policy does not only have influence on the Cotu’s livelihoods but also makes a large number of male workers redundant as their main role of forest-related activities has changed. Therefore, long-term and stable life as well as sustainable livelihoods combining forest protection for the local Cotu are urgent and are the main objectives of local government as well as conservation authorities. Once people’s livelihoods improve and change in a sustainable manner, together with enhanced awareness of forest protection, the task of development and conservation will not be an issue. Hence, upon SNR’s existence, there have been many policies such as policy of payment for forest environmental service under Decree 99/2011/NĐ-CP, policy of investment and development for Special Use Forest (SUF) under Decision 24/2012/QĐ-TTg, policy of SUF management under Decree 117/2010/NĐ-CP, Decision 186/2006/QĐ-TTg, Circular 20/2012/TT-UBND, etc., which target protecting SNR together with improving the targeted-area’s livelihoods.
Nevertheless, the facts are that poverty, new employment, and the local people exploiting forest-related products are still main challenges for local and conservation authorities. Therefore, it is necessary to have an overall assessment of the buffer livelihoods, their vulnerability situations and impacts of SNR on their livelihoods. Purposes and questions of the study The very first purpose of the study is focused on learning, analyzing the vulnerability context, livelihood situation, particularly identifying strengths and weaknesses of livelihood assets such as human, social, natural, physical, and financial capital. Then the study analyzes the advantages and disadvantages in the process of livelihood capital access, the combination of these resources to make livelihood strategies; livelihood outcomes of the Cotu people in Bhalee, Tay Giang, Quang Nam.
TIEU LUAN MOI download : skknchat@gmail.com -3- The second purpose of the study is to evaluate impacts of current policies, especially forest- related policies on the perspective of livelihood. Then, incorporating with other poverty reduction researches, programs and projects, the very last goal of the study is to propose solutions for sustainable livelihoods combining forest reserve in order to help improve livelihoods, and a sustainable way out of poverty for the Cotu at the research sites.