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On February 10, 2023, the Association of Smallholder Forest Certification Groups of Quang Tri (SFCG) and MCNV jointly held a closing workshop for the project “Promoting sustainable partnerships between CSOs and enterprises for sustainable forestry management in the context of climate change” (PROSPER project) co-funded by the European Union and MCNV.

After three years of implementation, PROSPER project has achieved a number of significant outcomes that profoundly impact the implementation of sustainable forestry development plan of Quang Tri province.

The Quang Tri SFCG Association, consisting of 43 member units and community groups are deeply involved in the process of reducing emissions and paying for forest environmental services. With about 2,880 hectares of FSC® certified acacia plantations, annually the Association’s member units directly contribute to emissions reduction through changes in silviculture techniques of forest owners. The Quang Tri SFCG Association is also the first association of this model in Vietnam that has linked member units of planted forests and community-managed natural forests to participate in the FSC certification system.

Thanks to PROSPER project, 2,145 hectares of natural forests of five member units in the mountainous area, which contribute to sequestrating 7,000 tons of CO₂ annually, were granted FSC certification for ecosystem services.

With over 5,000 hectares of acacia plantations and natural forests certified with FSC, more than 3,700 farmers from lowland and upland communities, smallholder groups and cooperatives have participated in supplying raw materials to the FSC market, including acacia wood and non-timber forest products such as bamboo, tung seeds, black locust and dried bamboo-shoots.

Quang Tri province has approved the Plan 237/KH-UBND on the development of production associated with processing and consumption of tung oil in the period of 2023 – 2026 with a vision to 2030, with the target of producing about 4,000 tons of tung seeds, equivalent to a commercial value of about 50 billion VND per year for farmers in the mountainous areas.

Five SFCG Association’s member units in the mountainous areas are approaching the voluntary payment for 7,000 tons of CO₂ with a rate of 10 Euros for one ton of CO₂, totally equivalent to about 1.5 billion VND per year. This model can be replicated to create opportunities for communities managing natural forests to better perform their tasks in emission reduction and forest development.

With an output of about 30,000 tons of FSC-certified bamboo, Quang Tri province has the opportunity to create a raw material area for WWS enterprise to produce about 10,000 tons of bamboo biochar per year. This will create a commercial value of about VND 50 billion for farmers and contribute to the long-term sequestration of 20,000 tons of CO₂ annually in the form of biochar.

The community-based tourism model based on community-managed natural forests certified with FSC for ecosystem services opens up opportunities for community livelihood development associated with sustainable forest management. The initial results have contributed to Resolution No. 02-NQ/HU on conservation and promotion of cultural values of ethnic minorities in Huong Hoa district.

In his opening speech, MCNV Vietnam Country Director, Mr.Pham Dung said: The PROSPER project represents an effort of MCNV in expanding the organization’s assistance for Quang Tri, one of the organization’s strategic partners, to the field of climate change response.

Mr.Pham Dung highlighted PROSPER as a key project of MCNV, in the context of increasing replication of forest smallholders FSC certification in various localities. This is a model which has been pioneered by Quang Tri, in order to effectively implement the Government’s policy on land and forests allocation to the community for management.

On this occation, MCNV Country Director expressed sincere thank to EU, Quang Tri SFCG Association, Quang Tri Provincial People’s Committee, People’s Committee of Huong Hoa district and other participating districts and communes; management agencies such as the provincial Department of Agriculture and and Rural Development, the provincial police force and border guards; the Department of Foreign Affairs; the Committee for Ethnic Minority Affairs, Forest Management Board, fellow NGOs such as WWF, enterprises.

He especially appreciated the participation of forests smallholders, groups, families and individuals for their excellent contribution to PROSPER project! “Your participation is the critical factor that decides the success of the project!” he said.

Speaking at the workshop, Mr.Pham Trong Ho, Vice Chairman of Huong Hoa district’s People’s Committee, expressed his appreciation for MCNV’s unwavering support for the people of Quang Tri in 55 years.

He emphasized that despite being implemented in a short period of time, PROSPER has generated breakthrough outcomes for Huong Hoa district, paving a new path in the field of community forest management, livelihood development for mountainous communities, development of planted forests along with protection forests and especially contributing to carbon emission reduction.

“We think that PROSPER has generated models that worth replicating via incorporating into national target programs, as well as mobilizing resources from development projects and enterprises working in the provinces”, he said.

Quang Tri has been a pioneering province in engaging smallholders in SFM and FSC. In 2014, the Quang Tri Smallholder Forest Certification Group (SFCG) Association became the first smallholder in Vietnam that was recognized as a legal entity and certified for FSC.

PROSPER project was co-funded by the European Union (EU) and MCNV with total value of EUR 800,000 (USD 898,000), February 2020 – February 2023 period, aiming to promote sustainable partnership between CSOs and enterprises for sustainable forest management in the context of climate change.

In Vietnam, sustainable forest management (SFM) and forest certification (FSC) are two among five areas of the global and national Action Plan of Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+).

Sustainable management of natural resources in the context of climate change requires good governance and commitment of local communities to engaging in environmentally responsible plans for land and forest use./.

Last September MCNV Laos supported the Nong district government and Nong district education office by contributing 25.458.000 Kip (about 1.425 Euro) for materials needed to repair the roof of the Pa-loiy’s primary school, a village school with 3 teachers and about 90 children. Mrs. Xangthong Kiedtavong, Nong district vice governor and Mr. Kandam Phueiysayavong, Director of Nong district education office received this budget from a MCNV representative.

On the 24th – 25th of November 2022, MCNV organized an exposure visit for a group of ethnic women and representatives of the local authority and community to the processing facility of Nhien Thao Quang Tri Co. Ltd. – a linked enterprise in Quang Tri province, Vietnam.

This was part of the “Promoting Sustainable Partnership between CSOs and Enterprises for Sustainable Forest Management in the Context of Climate Change” (PROSPER) project that is co-funded by the EU and MCNV. One of the the project’s focuses is to promote market-oriented linkages between enterprises with strong corporate social responsibility and indigenous communities in the area.

Contract signing between enterprise and community on the supply of NTFPs

The visit was aimed at concretizing mutual understanding and building trust for a win-win business cooperation. The ethnic poor women in Huong Viet commune took a journey in an entire Custody of Chain, from their supply of non-timber forest products (NTFPs) to the stages of material processing and product finishing. Both sides discussed about quality requirements and developed an action plan for future cooperation.

An ethnic woman processing raw material of black locust before delivery

Beside materials of wild pomelo and black locust presently supplied by the women group in Huong Viet commune, the enterprise would expand their material areas with other other kinds of NTFPs such as lime and lemongrass to the other ethnic communities in the province. The stage of processing raw materials would be handed over to the communities to decrease transportation cost for the enterprise and increase the added values of NTFPs for the community suppliers. The nursing of NTFPs seedlings was also taken into deep consideration.

It is the fact that growing demand for NTFPs in the recent decades evokes a special concern over sustainable use, preservation and development of the forest resources in particular and the eco-system in general. To this end, the exposure visit was going on the right track and reached the set goal./.

On the 18^th – 19^th of November 2022, Chenh Venh Eco-Tourism Cluster in Huong Phung commune of Quang Tri province received special guests in the countrywide on a Famtrip in Huong Hoa district. These include around 64 representatives of the local authority and relevant agencies, Vietnam Association of Community Tourism, Tourism Associations in provinces of Thua Thien Hue, Quang Binh and Quang Tri.

The trip, which was jointly organized by Quang Tri Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, Helvetas Vietnam and a local tourist enterprise, aimed to consult relevant stakeholders on the improvement and development of  Chenh Venh Eco-Tourism Cluster and Ta Con flowers garden in the years to come. The activity is also part of a technical assistance project titled ‘Biodiversity conservation and sustainable forest management’ by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

As part of the Famtrip’s agenda, the delegation spent an entire day of the 18^th of November 2022 at the tourist destination, experiencing a vast of services and visiting all of the tourism attractions consisting of the FSC certified natural forest under the management of the community. At a wrap-up meeting on the next day, the tourists expressed their satisfaction of the services, highly appreciated the tourist operation of the community, and definitely gave feedback on things that need improving in the coming time.

Chenh Venh Eco-Tourism Cluster is an initiative that has been developed, facilitated and supported by MCNV since mid-2021. At a wider scope, in the PROSPER project MCNV provided technical assistance to Chenh Venh ethnic community and the others in neighboring communes to gain FSC certificate for the community-managed natural forest in November 2021, and FSC certificate on eco-system in October 2022. All of these are expected to usher in opportunities for the indigenous people to generate income and improve livelihoods, thus contributing to sustainable forest management./.

*More pictures capturing the trip

Congratulations to 17 physicians on graduating from the 6-month Basic Rehabilitation (Rehab) Course provided by the Training and Direction of Healthcare Activities Center, Bach Mai Hospital on November 18, 2022.

 Thanks to the valuable guidance of the lecturers from the Training and Direction of Healthcare Activities Center and the Rehab Center, Bach Mai Hospital, 17 trainees coming from three Central and Central Highland provinces (Kon Tum, Binh Dinh, Quang Tri) have completed the course with impressive results:

100% trainees are qualified to be conferred with the certificate of Basic Rehab Training, complying with the Circular No.22/2013/TT-BYT and No.26/2020/TT-BYT issued by the Ministry of Health on continuing education.

 Out of 17 trainees, 01 graduates with High Distiction, 8 with Distinction and 7 with Good results.

Nowadays, manpower shortage is still a challenge facing the rehabilitation sector in Vietnam, especially at the district-level healthcare system. Aiming to address this pressing issue, MCNV proposed for organizing a rehabilitation course for physicians as part of the “Improving the quality of life of persons with disabilities in provinces heavily sprayed with Agent Orange” (Inclusion) project.

The Basic Rehab course was organized by MCNV as part of Inclusion 1 & 2 project, sponsored by USAID via the CCIHP (Center for Creative Initiatives in Health and Population) and CCRD (Center for Community Health Research and Development). Inclusion project is owned by the National Action Centre for Toxic Chemicals and Environmental Treatment (NACCET).

Delivered in six months (May 2022 – November 2022), the course aims to equip the trainees with adequate knowledge and skills in diagnosis and intervention for common conditions that require rehabilitation services such as stroke, brain injury, spinal cord injury, knee joint, hip joint replacement.

The trainees are provided with relevant skills in screening, providing assessment and intervention for patients and persons with disabilities (PwDs) in hospitals and the community./.

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September 27^th, 2022 – After five years of implementation, the Speech and Language Therapy (SALT) Education Development in Vietnam project was concluded with all goals achieved, including the graduation of Vietnam’s first ever 14 Master and 20 Bachelor degree holders of SALT (MSALT and BSALT).

Following the first ever Master of SALT, the first Bachelor of SALT (graduating from Da Nang University of Medical Technology and Pharmacy) was another significant outcome generated by SALT Education project – a component of DISTICNT project by VietHealth, funded by USAID in a five-year period (October 1st , 2017 – September 30^th, 2022).

The project was implemented by MCNV with technical support from Trinh Foundation Australia (TFA), aiming tolay a solid foundation for the development of an official education system for the SALT profession in Vietnam. The Project was concluded with a closing meeting held on September 27^th to review the implementation of the Project as well as drawing lessons learned.

Earlier, on September 26^th, a hybrid Thematic Workshop on SALT was held by MCNV and partners, bringing together around 120 in-person and online participants from Vietnam and abroad. The MSALT graduates, BSALT students and international academics from different universities in Australia presented their research in SALT.

In over the past five years, SALT project has successfully achieved its key goals, with the completion of Vietnam’s first Masters and Bachelors of SALT, conducted in coordination with HCM University of Medicine and Pharmacy (UMP HCM) and Da Nang University of Medical Technology and Pharmacy (DUMPT) respectively.

The two MSALT and BSALT courses cover all the SALT scopes following international education in SALT, including assessment, diagnosis, habilitation, rehabilitation, counseling, and prevention services for individuals from birth through old age who have some type of speech, voice, language, fluency, cognitive-communicative, or swallowing problems due to delayed development or as a result of an injury, cancer, stroke or progressive neurological disease. The MSALT was for 2 years and the BSALT was for 4 years. Due to the shortage of qualified Vietnamese SALT trainers, most of the trainers are from overseas (Australia, the UK, US, New Zealand).

With the completion of the MSALT and BSALT courses, the Project has supported four Medical Universities which are UMP HCMC, DUMPT, Hue University of Medicine and Pharmacy (Hue UMP) and Hai Duong Medical Technical University (HMTU) on capacity building for SALT trainers and BSALT, MSALT curriculum development.

As a part of the Project, a network of national and international SALT academics, practitioners and clinical sites were established to support the development of SALT in Vietnam in terms of education and services.

Concurrently, the awareness of SALT among rehabilitation professionals and the public has been vastly improved, thanks to the frequent maintenance and updates of a SALT website (http://speechtherapyvn.net/) and a Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/ngonngutrilieu.mcnv).

Overall, despite half of the journey was covered with COVID-19 pandemic challenges, SALT project celebrated its conclusion with the accomplishment of all goals. This achievement could not have been made without the strong commitments by MCNV and the unwavering support from the project sponsor – USAID, related governmental authorities, national and international academics and clinical educators, service providers in rehabilitation in HCMC, Da Nang, and Hai Duong, and many others./.

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This summer a changing of the guard took place in the Supervisory Board of MCNV. Chairman Marijke Postma earlier announced that she was going to reduce her workload and therefore decided not to serve out her second term. Marijke, chairman since 2016, has led MCNV through the change of management, attended the celebration of the 50th anniversary of MCNV in Laos and contributed to two multi-year strategy plans (2017-2021 and 2021-2025). Under her chairmanship, MCNV has been able to strengthen its position as a reliable organization with a recognizable profile.

At her farewell, Marijke emphasized that Vietnam and Laos will always have a special place with her.

“For me, the contact with marginalized groups and the small scale of the projects is essential, even more than the topics. That expertise and the way of working, so very successful over the years in Vietnam, can be of great benefit in Laos in the coming years.”

Mattijs Smits also says goodbye to the Supervisory Board. From his position as a lecturer in the Department of Environmental Policy at Wageningen University and with his personal knowledge of and experience in Southeast Asia, Mattijs has made a valuable, substantive contribution for 7,5 years. A focus on the improvement of living conditions and the consequences of climate change were paramount.

New Members of the Supervisory Board

At the beginning of 2022, we welcomed two new members of the Supervisory Board: Cily Keizer and Nathalie Veenman. Cily Keizer has more than 30 years of experience in international cooperation and has lived in Southeast Asia for a long time. Nathalie Veenman has lived in Laos, worked at policy and program level in international development and is now Director of Communication and Development at the Wildlife Justice Commission.

The Supervisory Board has elected Cily Keizer as chairman as of 15 August 2022. Both Cily and Nathalie introduce themselves to you here.