The Expansion of Farm-Based Plantation Forestry in Vietnam

Abstract

This study targets plantation forestry by farm households (small holders), which is increasing globally and most rapidly in China and Vietnam. By use of an interdisciplinary approach on three study sites in Vietnam, we examined the trends in farmers' tree planting over time, the various pre-requisites for farm-based plantation forestry and its impact on rural people's livelihood strategies, socioeconomic status, income and security. The findings indicated a change from subsistence to cash-based household economy, diversification of farmers' incomes and a transformation of the landscape from mainly natural forests, via deforestation and shifting cultivation, to a landscape dominated by farm-based plantations. The trend of transformation, over a period of some 30 years, towards cash crops and forestry was induced by a combination of policy, market, institutional, infrastructural and other conditions and the existence of professional farming communities, and was most rapid close to the industrial market.

Financing household tree plantations in Vietnam: Current programmes and future options

“…These general insights apply to commercial tree plantations operated by farm households in Vietnam (Sandewall et al 2010). Research conducted under this project shows that access to external finance is a critical determinant of how farm households manage their tree plantations (Sikor and Hoang Lien Son 2009).…”

“…Phu Tho was selected because the Vietnamese government has promoted household tree-planting in the province since the late 1980s (Sandewall et al 2010). The province is home to Bai Bang Pulp and Paper Mill, which was built by the Vietnamese government with Swedish support in the late 1970s.…”

“…The emphasis on village averages is not intended to overlook the presence of significant differences amongst households within the villages (cf. Sandewall et al 2010). Please see Section 3.2 for an attempt to capture the variations amongst households and see Sikor and Baggio (2011) for a detailed analysis.…”

“…This is because households value access, costs, risk and match with finance requirements differently depending on whether they orient production towards survival, surplus or investment (cf. Sandewall et al 2010). Low risk and easy access may be of critical importance to survival-oriented households but less so to the other types.…”

“…Most farm households in Vietnam harvest plantations after 4 or 5 years, selling the wood to pulp or chip mills (cf. Nguyen Nghia Bien et al 2006, Sandewall et al 2010.…”