[Report 19. Full report 0.5 MB. pdf format]

Executive Summary

This report is an English-language version of the guidelines for Feasibility Studies and Investment Plans for designating Special-use Forests. These guidelines have been formulated by the Forest Inventory and Planning Institute (FIPI), with assistance from the BirdLife International Vietnam Programme, as part of the European-Union-funded project Expanding the protected areas network in Vietnam for the 21st Century.

The purpose of these guidelines is to provide clear guidance to the authors of Feasibility Studies and Investment Plans, the official documents upon which decision makers at the provincial and central levels base decisions on whether to establish and provide funding for Special-use Forests. The intended audience of these guidelines is the authors of Feasibility Studies and Investment Plans, at both Vietnamese government institutions and national and international non-governmental organisations (NGOs). While these guidelines are specific to Special-use Forests (national parks, nature reserves and cultural and historical sites), they may also be of use to the authors of Feasibility Studies and Investment Plans for other categories of protected area, such as coastal and marine protected areas.

Previously, most Feasibility Studies and Investment Plans for Special-use Forests produced by government institutions followed Decision 1171/QD of the Minister of Forestry, dated 30 December 1986. While this decision provided some guidance to the authors of Feasibility Studies and Investment Plans, the information presented in these reports was often lacking in depth and scope. Consequently, FIPI, with the assistance of BirdLife and financial support for the European Union, embarked upon a process to formulate a new set of guidelines, in order to ensure that decision makers are provided with more detailed and relevant information, and that resources available for the establishment and management of Special-use Forests are targeted more efficiently.

The process to formulate the new set of guidelines began in April 1999. Decision 1171/QD of the Minister of Forestry formed the foundation of the guidelines, to which elements of Feasibility Studies and Investment Plans for protected areas in other countries were included. The process involved consultations with several government institutions and international NGOs with experience of writing Feasibility Studies and Investment Plans. On 9 September 1999, a first draft of the guidelines was discussed at a workshop hosted by FIPI, and attended by representatives of international NGOs and government institutions involved in the process of surveying and establishing protected areas. Following this workshop, the guidelines underwent several further rounds of revisions.

In December 2000, the guidelines were submitted to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD). It is hoped that, upon approval by MARD, the guidelines will be issued in the form of an official ministerial decision. Government institutions will then be required to follow the guidelines when producing Feasibility Studies and Investment Plans.

This report contains two documents: an English-language version of the draft guidelines submitted to MARD, and a technical annex. The purpose of the technical annex is to provide a greater depth of detail to assist the authors of Feasibility Studies and Investment Plans. It is likely that, during the approval process, the guidelines will undergo further minor revisions. Consequently, this report should be considered to be only a working draft. Upon approval by MARD, it is intended that the final guidelines will be published in Vietnamese and English.

[Report 19. Full report 0.5 MB. pdf format]