CONSERVATION TRAINING AND BIODIVERSITY ACTION PLAN


( Project VN0017 )


T


he government of Vietnam has stated that the lack of a framework of action and resources, in terms of both funding and trained personnel, is a major obstacle to nature conservation in the country. WWF's Conservation Training and Biodiversity Action Plan project, funded under the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), aims to help the government overcome this obstacle. The five­year project, which began in 1993, has two major components: preparation of a biodiversity action plan for Vietnam, and capacity building through human resource development.


Completed in 1995, the Biodiversity Action Plan serves as the primary, guiding blueprint for achieving biodiversity conservation in Vietnam. It has a list of projects with specific budgets and time­frames, and gives an accurate, up­to­date assessment of the status of the country's biodiversity. It was drafted by a team made up of local scientists, government decision­makers, and international consultants, and underwent extensive review and revision. Approved by the Prime Minister in December 1995, the plan will be presented at an international donors' round­table meeting to be held at Cuc Phuong National Park.


The project's second component - capacity building - funded the setting up of three small conservation field training centres in various parts of the country; one in the north (Cuc Phuong), another in the centre (Bach Ma), and the third in the south (Cat Tien). These centres provide local, provincial, and central officials responsible for managing protected areas with training in integrated forest management and community extension work. So far, the centres have trained over 400 protected area managers and forest guards. The curricula for the protected area manager and forest guard training courses were prepared by instructors from the Wildlife Institute of India, one of Asia's most prominent conservation institutions.


In addition, overseas field attachments and advanced training (Masters programmes, diploma courses, etc) are being provided for local conservation staff. Such training includes study tours to India, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand; community forestry courses at Thailand's Kasetsart University; a wildlife management course conducted jointly by Malaysia's Department of Wildlife and National Parks and the Smithsonian Institute; and a visit to the WWF Philippines/the Philippines Government's Integrated Protected Area System project.




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Copyright 1996, The World Wide Fund For Nature