watershed management and forestry strategy and action plan ... · 1.4 strategy and action plan...

STRATEGY STUDY ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE WATERSHED MANAGEMENT/FORESTRY SECTOR IN THE

LOWER MEKONG BASIN

WATERSHED MANAGEMENT AND FORESTRY STRATEGY ANDACTION PLAN FOR

THE MEKONG RIVER COMMISSION FINAL REPORT

15 January 2000 416.3149.1

ARCADIS Euroconsult Arnhem,

The Netherlands

CONTENTS

Mekong River Commission Secretariat Government of Switzerland Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation

List of Tables iv

List of Figures iv

List of Appendices iv

List of Abbreviations v

Preamble vii

Acknowledgement viii

Executive summary x

1 BACKGROUND 1

1.1 Introduction to Strategy Study 1

1.2 Objectives, Approach & Methodology 2

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1.2.1 Goal and study objective 2

1.2.2 Approach 3

1.2.3 Methodology 4

1.3 Watersheds as Basic Planning Units 5

1.4 Strategy and Action Plan Report Structure 6

2 GENERAL CONDITIONS AND TRENDS OF THE WATERSHEDS AND FORESTRY SECTOR IN THE LMB

7

2.1 Watersheds 7

2.1.1 Transborder critical watersheds 12

2.1.2 Land use 12

2.1.3 Land tenure 13

2.1.4 Forest typology and ecosystems 14

2.1.5 Biodiversity and protected areas 15

2.1.6 Hydrology 15

2.2 Forests 15

2.2.1 Forest cover 15

2.2.2 Deforestation 16

2.2.3 Forest functions 16

2.2.4 Socio-economic and cultural forest function 17

2.2.5 Wood demand, production and supply 17

2.2.6 Impacts of wood supply-demand imbalances 18

2.2.7 Non-wood products 19

2.2.8 Forest encroachment and shifting cultivation 19

2.3 NMCs Policies on Watershed Management and Forestry 20

2.4 Legislative and Institutional Framework 21

2.4.1 Forestry legislation and institutional arrangements 21

2.4.2 Legislation on land tenure and protected areas 22

2.5 Linkage Between Deforestation and Social Consequences 23

3 CONSTRAINTS AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR DEVELOPMENT OF THE FOREST AND WATERSHED SECTORS

25

3.1 Constraints to Sector 25

3.1.1 Inattention to socioeconomic issues pertinent to poverty and environmental degradation

25

3.1.2 Inadequate institutional capacity 26

3.1.3 Inadequate economic valuation of environment services provided by watersheds

27

3.1.4 Rapid in-migration and population growth in upper watersheds 28

3.1.5 Rapid outmigration from upper watersheds and gender consequences 29

3.1.6 Land-use transformation 29

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3.1.7 Forest land classification 30

3.1.8 Land use planning, zoning and conflict resolution 30

3.1.9 Forest concessions 31

3.1.10 Logging and log transportation practices 32

3.1.11 Profusion of regulatory documents 32

3.1.12 Customary land rights 33

3.1.13 Gender constraints related to forestry and watershed development 33

3.1.14 Participation constraints related to forestry and watershed development

34

3.1.15 Hydropower and irrigation development 34

3.2 Opportunities for Sector Development 35

3.2.1 Investment trends in forestry and relevant other sectors 35

3.2.2 Market prospects for wood and non-wood forest products and services

36

3.2.3 Instruments for capturing environmental benefits of forests 37

3.2.4 Global and community awareness and international law 40

3.2.5 Participation and Forest Protection Committees 40

3.2.6 Donor interest 41

4 JUSTIFICATION FOR STRATEGY 43

4.1 Importance 43

4.1.1 Environmental importance of LMB forests 43

4.1.2 Socio-economic importance of LMB forests 44

4.2 Rationale for MRCS and NMCs 45

4.3 Linkage with BDP and WUP 47

5 STRATEGIC GOAL AND OBJECTIVES 49

5.1 Development Context 49

5.2 Goal and Objectives 49

6 PROGRAMME COMPONENTS AND FOCAL AREAS 51

6.1 Focal Area No 1: Security of Land Tenure and Resource Rights 51

6.2 Focal Area No 2: Sustainable Forest Management 52

6.3 Focal Area No 3: Ecosystem Improvement and Biodiversity Conservation

53

6.4 Focal Area No 4: Human Resources and Institutional Capacity Building

54

7 CRITERIA FOR MRC FORESTRY AND WATERSHED MANAGEMENT INTERVENTIONS

57

7.1 Thematic Criteria 57

7.2 Criteria for Selection of Individual Critical Watersheds 57

7.3 Checklists for Screening Projects for Socio-economic and Gender Issues

58

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LIST OF TABLES

7.3.1 Socio-economic issues 58

7.3.2 Gender issues 60

7.4 Assessment of Forestry and Watershed Management Projects listed in MRC's Work Programme

60

7.5 EIA Requirements 60

8 THE ROLE OF MEKONG RIVER COMMISSION AND THE NATIONAL MEKONG COMMITTEES

63

8.1 Overview of Past MRCS Activities in Forestry/Watershed Management

63

8.2 MRCS Staff Capacity 65

8.3 MRC's Strengths in Forestry and Watershed Management Sector 65

8.4 MRC's Weaknesses in Forestry and Watershed Management Sector 66

8.5 Strengths of a Regional Approach 67

8.6 Limitations of a Regional Approach 67

8.7 MRC's Future Role in Forestry and Watershed Management in the LMB

68

8.8 National Mekong Committees 69

8.9 National Line Agencies 69

9 ACTION PLAN 71

10 IMPLEMENTATION ARRANGEMENTS 73

10.1 Stakeholder Participation 73

10.2 Implementation Programme 73

11 COSTS AND FINANCING REQUIREMENTS 75

12 REFERENCES 77

Table 1 Watershed classes and their surface areas by country

Table 2 Watershed classes I and II and surface area without having forest cover by country in the Lower Mekong Basin

Table 3 Major critical LMB transborder sub-basins

Table 4 Forest cover trends in LMB Countries, 1975-1997

Table 5 Agricultural land use trends in LMB, 1993-1997

Table 6 Main biological features of three prevailing sub Indo-Malayan-units within LMB

Table 7 Flow characteristics Mekong River

Table 8 Summary of wood supply and wood flows in LMB

Table 9 Lower Mekong Basin industrial roundwood trade

Table 10 Key government agencies and NMCs' staff compliment in watershed management

Table 11 Forest plantations in the Lower Mekong River Basin

Table 12 Most common tree species planted in commercial plantations (Viet Nam 1976-93)

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LIST OF FIGURES

LIST OF APPENDICES

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

Table 13 Principal projects on forestry and watershed management in LMB

Table 14 Development of a MRC socio-economic monitoring and evaluation system

Table 15 Assessment of forestry and watershed management projects proposed for MRC support 1993-1997 to determine if they meet criteria of the strategy and action plan

Table 16 Overview of MRC executed watershed management and forestry projects

Table 17 Programme for implementation of the Strategy and Action Plan for Forestry and Watershed Management

Table 18 Cost estimates for implementation of individual projects

Figure 1 Statistical evaluation of watershed classification in the Lower Mekong Basin from WSC Database

Figure 2 Location of LMB sub-basins

Appendix 1 General overview of the main characteristics of LMB sub-basins

Appendix 2 Overview of LMB watershed management projects

Appendix 3 Individual project descriptions (Project Identification Notes)

ADB Asian Development Bank

BDP Basin Development Plan

BDS Basin Diagnostic Study

BOT Build Operate and Transfer

CBO Community Based Organisation

CNMC Cambodian National Mekong Committee

CPAWM Centre for Protected Area and Watershed Management

CDC Council for Development of Cambodia

DEDP (Thailand) Department of Energy Development Promotion

DG Director General

DoF Department of Forests

DoSC Department of Soil Conservation

EGTA Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand

EIA Environmental Impact Assessment

ESA Environmental Sensitive Area

FAO Food and Agricultural Organisation

FCMP Forest Cover Monitoring Programme

FOMACOP Forest Management and Conservation Project

FIPC Forest Inventory Planning Centre

FSEDP First Socio-Economic Development Programme

GEF Global Environmental Facility

GDP Gross Domestic Product

GoC Government of Cambodia

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PREAMBLE

Since the establishment in 1957 of the Committee for Co-ordination of Investigations of the Lower Mekong Basin (LMB), a large number of studies have been carried on the basin natural resources. The ongoing losses in forest cover in the LMB over the past decades and the emerging adverse trends in watershed management and natural resource sustainability in the basin's upland forests have become issues of international concern. Widespread deforestation is causing increasing water runoff, soil erosion, siltation in rivers and wetlands, increasing rates of occurrence and severity of floods, landslides and droughts, loss of biodiversity, fisheries depletion, and damage to agricultural and irrigation systems. These impacts are often transboundary in nature, especially affecting downstream areas. This has prompted the governments to embark on major programmes to address the fundamental issues linked to upland watershed deterioration. Lately, increasing attention has been given

GoL Government of Laos

GoT Government of Thailand

GoV Government of Viet Nam

GTZ German Development Co-operation Agency

IMC Interim Mekong Committee

IUCN International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources

KRA Key Result Area

LMB Lower Mekong Basin

LNMC Lao National Mekong Committee

MAF Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (Lao PDR)

MARD Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (Viet Nam)

MRCS Mekong River Commission Secretariat

NAFRI National Agriculture and Forestry Research Institute

NESDB National Economic and Social Development Board

NGO Non-Governmental Organisation

NTFP Non-Timber Forest Product

NMC National Mekong Committee

PIN Project Identification Note

RETA Regional Technical Assistance

SDC Swiss Agency for Development Co-operation

SMRP Sustainable Management of Resources Project

STEA Science, Technology, and Environment Authority (Lao PDR)

TA Technical Assistance

TNMC Thai National Mekong Committee

ToR Terms of Reference

VNMC Viet Nam National Mekong Committee

WSC Watershed Classification Project WHO World Health Organisation

WUP Water Utilisation Programme

WWF World Wide Fund for Nature

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by the MRC to the transboundary nature of (forest) resource depletion in the upper watersheds, and a number of projects have been undertaken to assess the watershed and forestry resources in the Lower Mekong River basin. These include the SDC-funded Watershed Classification Project (WSC) which started in June 1990, and the GTZ-funded Forest Cover Monitoring Project, which started in December 1992. Whilst the results of these studies have proven were valuable as analytical tools for land use planning and natural resource management, the need for a programme approach was recognised as early as 1995.

A Strategy Study has therefore been commissioned to draw up a Watershed and Forestry Management Strategy and Action Plan for implementation by the MRCS and the National Mekong Committees (NMCs) of the Lower Mekong Basin (LMB). The Strategy Study has assessed forestry/watershed issues in the four LMB countries: the Kingdom of Cambodia, Lao People's Democratic Republic, the Kingdom of Thailand and the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam. The two upper basin countries: the People's Republic of China and Myanmar have not been included as they are currently not signatories to the MRC Agreement.

The Strategy Study was carried our a period of six months by a team of consultants under the guidance of MRCS, and with substantial contributions from four riparian experts (one expert from each riparian country) who were on contract with MRCS.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The Study Team would like to thank the many individuals and organisations who have contributed to the production of this report and without whose co-operation and contributions the Strategy and Action Plan could not have been produced. This document was developed over a six months' period of analysis and dialogue among Mekong River Commission Secretariat staff, followed by extensive consultations with relevant other policy interest groups.

In particular the Study Team is indebted to the riparian experts and members of the Steering Committee. We thank the Steering Group members: Ty Sokhun (Chief, Forestry and Wildlife Department, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries), Pravit Chittachumnonk (Director of Foreign Forestry Affairs Division, Royal Forest Department, Kingdom of Thailand), Linseng Douangsavanh (Deputy Director General, Lao National Mekong Committee, Lao PDR); Mrs Nguyen Minh Tam (Programme Officer, Viet Nam National Mekong Committee, Socialist Republic of Viet Nam) for their co-operation and efforts in smoothing the path of the project and for made many valuable suggestions for improving the content of this report. We are extremely grateful to the riparian experts: Teang Sokhom (Watershed Management Unit, Department of Forestry and Wildlife, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries) and Meang Saktheara (Ministry of Water Resources, Irrigation and Meteorology, Royal Government of Cambodia); Savay Thammavongsa (Watershed Management Unit, Department of Forest, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Lao PDR); Udhai Thongmee, Ruang Janmahasatien and Suchila Teeraporn (Watershed Management Division, Royal Forest Department, Kingdom of Thailand); and Dr Nguyen Huy Phon (Forest Inventory Planning Institute, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Socialist Republic of Viet Nam).

Tabulation of basic biophysical and socioeconomic data of the sub-basins as well as printing of the maps would not have been possible without the, generous co-operation of Thomas Breu, Chief Technical Advisor of the Watershed Classification Project. He provided the Study Team with detailed data sets on the quality and trends of the LMB sub-basins. Without

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these data sets trend analysis would have not been possible. We like to thank him for his constant support, true and sincere co-operation and valuable guidance to make this project a success.

Our sincere gratitude is expressed to all MRC staff members who contributed valuable verbal and/or written information and assistance. We are indebted to the foresightedness of MRCS officers Dr Tongchai Wechasut, Officer-in-charge, Forestry Unit; Nguyen Nhan Quang, Assistant to Chief Executive Officer; and Tran Canh, Director, Agriculture Division, who supported the Study Team throughout the six months. The newly appointed Chief Executive Officer, Joern Kristensen provided many useful comments. Inpong Manivong (Programme Officer, Planning Unit, Policy and Planning Division) never failed to ensure the team to interact with other MRCS initiatives and projects.

We like to thank in particular the following MRCS staff Shin-Ichi Teramura (Senior Adviser, Planning Unit, Policy and Planning Division), Sok Saing Im (Chief, Hydrology Unit, HRD and Environment Division), Jean Lacoursiere (Chief of Environment Unit, HRD and Environment Division), Chou Meng Tarr (Socio-economist, Environment unit, HRD and Environment Division), Kaj Bork, (Director, Division of Finance and Administration), Karima Suchat (Gender Specialist), Huijune Shin (Officer-in-charge. Agriculture and Irrigation Unit, Agriculture Division), Jorgen Jesse (Chief, Fisheries Unit) Choochat Popprasert (Database Manager, Technical Support Unit), (Virak Sou, Junior Cartographic Assistant, Technical Support Unit),Lieven Geerinck (Officer-in-charge, River Works and Transport Unit, Resources Development Division), Veasna Bun (Water Resources Planner, Water Resources Unit, Resources Development Division), Ms Merete Vllum Pedersen, Junior Socio-Economist, Fisheries Unit), Mrs. Busabong Thephasdin Na Ayudhya, Director, Policy and Planning Division, Samran Chooduangnern, Senior Adviser, Planning Unit, Policy and Planning Division, Policy), Vichea Lam (Adviser, Planning Unit, Policy and Planning Division, Policy), R.W. Al-Soufi (Senior Environmental Adviser, Planning Unit, Policy and Planning Division), and Chaiyuth Sukhsri (Team Leader, Water Utilisation Programme Unit).

The consultants are grateful for the assistance provided by the librarian of MRCS Ms Sophiny for allowing the use of the Documentation Centre and providing the Study Team with numerous reports and articles.

A number of national and international specialists provided valuable information. All of the information on the ADB funded RETA. Poverty Alleviation and Environmental Management in Remote Greater Mekong Sub-Region Watersheds comes directly from the contributions of former Team Leader Stephen Devenish. We thank him for his prompt and thorough replies to our requests.

The IUCN country office in Vientiane provided the Study Team with office facilities whilst visiting Vientiane, so did the Watershed Classification Project. Their hospitalities are greatly appreciated.

The Study Team also benefited from the contributions and comments of many watershed and forestry specialists who joined the BPP team for a discussion on the approach and methodology for the report. Our gratitude goes especially to Mans Helmrich (Team Leader of the GTZ/MRC Sustainable Resource Management Project), Jurgen Fichtenau (GTZ-funded Community Forestry Project), Berthold Schrempp (MRCS Task Manager/Associate Team Leader MRC/ADB Strategic Environmental Framework for the Greater Mekong Sub-Region), Charles Vanpraet (Team Leader, Cambodian-German Forestry Project), Matt Wheeler (Wetlands International) and Colin Poole (Wildlife Conservation Society). Dr Kay Panzer (former CTA of the GTZ/MRC Forest Cover Monitoring Project) acted as moderator during the basin-wide consultation workshop, held in Vientiane in November 1999.

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The Study Team thank the various projects and organisations who provided information on their activities and copies of their reports: Mr Sous (Resident Representative, ADB Resident Mission), Tim Boyle (GEF Regional Co-ordinator for Biodiversity/International Waters), Valdemar Hvidt Holmgren (CTA Inventory and Management of Wetlands in the Lower Mekong Basin, Phase II), Nick van Zalinga (CTA Danida/MRC Project for the Management of the Freshwater Capture Fisheries of Cambodia), Willy van Kempen (EU-funded PRASAC, Zonal team leader Programme de Rehabillitation et d'Appui au Secteur Agricole du Cambodge) and ADB funded Sustainable Forestry Project consultants: Orban Buykal, Doug Henderson, Christoph Feldkotter, and Steven Eagle.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

i) Introduction

This report presents the findings from the Swiss Agency for Development and Co-operation (SDC) funded Strategy Study on the Development of the Watershed Management and Forestry Sector in the Lower Mekong Basin. The Study was carried out by ARCADIS Euroconsult of the Netherlands.

The consultants worked in close co-operation with riparian experts for the four LMB countries, who were contracted by the Mekong River Commission Secretariat to collect the basic data upon which the study was based.

The purpose of the Strategy Study is to prepare a watershed and forestry management strategy and action plan to guide the MRCS and National Mekong Committees (NMCs) of the Lower Mekong Basin (LMB) in expanding and strengthening their activities in forestry and watershed management.

ii) Status of Mekong forestry and watershed resources

The Mekong river system is one of the very few large river systems which have remained virtually unexploited. The Mekong region is endowed by a rich natural resource base, which is of vital importance to all its riparian states. There is considerable potential for natural resource management and development (agriculture, fisheries, forestry, etc.). The economies of the four Lower Mekong Basin states will, for some time to come, remain focused on exploitation of their primary natural resources. Sustained growth of the primary resources sectors is dependent upon improved management of the land and water resources. The riparian countries have recognised that their economic progress is inexorably linked to socially, environmentally and economically sustainable development of the Mekong basin.

It is estimated that about 17%, or 10 million of the LMB's 60 million people live in or near the LMB's forests. They depend on the forests for many important products and environmental services. A large portion of this population are native or indigenous peoples who rely on the forests for their way of life. Forests not only meet their economic needs for food and shelter but also form an integral part of their culture and spiritual traditions.

A number of forestry and watershed projects, coordinated by MRC, have shed light on the deteriorating conditions of many upper LMB watersheds and forest resources. Thirty percent of the LMB catchments, due to their biophysical conditions, should be classified as

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hydrological protection forests (so-called Class I areas), or protection and limited production forests (referred to as Class II areas). Class I areas include the headwaters of rivers, which are usually at high elevations, have very steep slopes and should remain under permanent forest cover. Class II areas apply to areas that usually are found at high elevations with steep to very steep slopes, and land forms which require soil and water conservation restrictions (so called Class II areas). From a national perspective, Laos has by far the highest percentage (55 %) of Class I + Class II areas within their part of the LMB, followed by Thailand (14 %), Viet Nam (13 %) and Cambodia (4%).

However, large areas of watershed classes I and II have lost their protective cover. In Laos, 20.6 % of the watershed class I and II areas are now void of forest and are in a critical state, whilst in Vietnam 7.5 % of WSC I + II areas are critically damaged (Cambodia 3.5 %). Therefore immediate watershed rehabilitation activities are required for a large number of watersheds in LMB sub-basins in order to arrest further watershed deterioration.

A large number of the most critical watersheds, requiring immediate interventions from the riparian states, are shared by two or more riparian countries. These include: Se San and Se Prok (sub-basin area covering Cambodia and Viet Nam), Se Kong (Cambodia, Viet Nam and Laos) and Nam Num (Laos and Viet Nam).

The LMB uplands comprise some II million ha of degraded (wood and shrubland) land –accounting for 18% of the LMB total surface area. Over 70% of this degraded wood and shrubland (amounting to 8.1 million ha) is located in Laos, which has the highest percentage of erosion-prone areas in the LMB. Watersheds in Laos contribute the largest flow volume to the Mekong river system, accounting for 43 % of the total average flow.

Increasing exploitation and conversion of these upland woodlands and consequent loss of their protective cover is leaning to negative impacts including: severe soil erosion, siltation, floods, droughts and other negative impacts will have downstream ramifications for hydropower development, irrigation and water resources development, human settlements, navigation and fisheries.

iii) Lack of coherent strategy and programme

The MRC realises that the level of acute watershed and forestry issues now require prompt actions among its member states. Given its responsibilities for basin-wide natural resource management, the four riparian countries as well as donor agencies expect the Secretariat to come forward with a long-term programme on watershed and forestry management. Whereas during the early years of the Commission's operations policies, strategies, action plans and programmes have been developed (or are in process of development) by the MRCS covering hydropower generation, fisheries, navigation, agriculture and irrigation, no coherent strategy and programme has so far been developed for the watershed management/forestry sector.

It is recognised by the member states of the MRC that future activities of this institution must aim at a balance between the economic, social and environmental dimensions of development. A watershed management/forestry strategy is needed to focus the operation of the MRCS to help bring remote rural communities out of poverty and to ensure the long-term sustainable management of the basin's forest and water resources. The MRCS is well placed to play a key role in sub-regional co-operation aimed at effective watershed management.

iv) Justification for Strategy and Action Plan

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A watershed management and forestry strategy and action plan is in line with the basic principles as laid down in the Agreement on the Co-operation for the Sustainable Development of the Mekong River Basin, signed by the four Lower Mekong Basin countries on 5 April 1995. The Agreement unequivocally states that the basin's natural resources are natural assets of immense value to all the riparian countries for the economic and social well-being and living standard of their people.

There is a need for a revised sector mandate due to changing issues affecting watersheds and recent reorientation of land use legislation, forestry policy and objectives in all four riparian countries. The MRC has made laudable progress with the implementation of a number of studies on the status of watersheds and forests in the LMB. These projects funded by SDC and GTZ (Swiss and German Governments respectively) have considerably strengthened the technical skills and professional ties among technicians in the four riparian countries.

It is now an opportune time for the MRC to build upon the experience gained during these studies and to take a more pro-active role in facilitating community-based forest and watershed rehabilitation interventions. This would, however necessitate a change in attitude on the part of MRC officers, as previously executed projects have not focused on addressing the social dimensions of river basin development.

The Commission's forestry-related activities have so far primarily focused on establishment of databases, with a view to preparing forest cover and watershed maps. However, a strong case can be made for MRCS to advocate an overall watershed management / forestry programme which covers a wider range of activities. It is recommended that the Commission adopt a programme approach-one which will include activities related to sub-regional co-operation in a number of fields, including: (i) institution building (through informal and formal training); (ii) pilot projects focusing on long-term community-based forest management systems; (iii) community awareness programmes on impacts on shifting cultivation; (iv) support for legal reform and policy formulation; and (v) support for updating the GIS and databases on forest cover and watershed classes.

The impacts of excessive forest loss and degradation on biodiversity loss and climate change are significant. The Commission, in pursuit of the 1995 Agreement and the October 1998 Strategic Plan, considers environmental issues and sustainability as mainstream issues. It thereby subscribes to the objective of bringing regional, national and local aspirations for community-based forest management more into the foreground of its sponsored activities. While a number of recent projects which the Commission has initiated address the issue of mainstreaming environmental and social-economic goals, in the case of its forest-related activities, these goals remain largely unfulfilled.

v) Strategy's Goal and Objectives

The Strategy's Goal is:

to promote co-operation in sustainable development, utilization, conservation and management of Mekong River Basin's forests and watersheds for the protection of local people's life, agricultural production and infrastructure from environmental degradation of upper Lower Mekong Basin watersheds.

The Objectives are:

i. to promote and to support methods for the transfer of effective land and forest management practices to the upland communities of the LMB; and

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ii. to strengthen LMB institutions engaged in forest and watershed management in forest rehabilitation and protection.

Achievement of this goal and objectives requires the integration of (biophysical) conservation and (socioeconomic) development in order to align the welfare and development strategies of upland communities with national and regional forest rehabilitation and conservation goals. This can be achieved by developing innovative methods for protecting and rehabilitating LMB's critical watersheds and forest resources.

For the watershed management part of the strategy, therefore a two-pronged approach is proposed to arrest further environmental degradation:

� immediate support will be required to build management capacity for watershed rehabilitation;

� in addition, prevailing poverty and food insecurity, which compel local communities to employ unsustainable land-use-practices, needs to be addressed. Support will be needed to improve forestry and agriculture extension services and to develop sustainable livelihood options for upland communities.

vi) Programme approach

A programme has been designed based on the following four Focal Areas (or Programme Components):

i. Security of Land Tenure and Resource Rights

ii. Sustainable Forest Management

iii. Ecosystem Improvement and Biodiversity Conservation

iv. Human Resources and Institutional Capacity Building

vii) Criteria

Forestry and watershed management projects to be pursued by MRC should be in line with MRC's mandate and strategy, which is to "promote and co-ordinate sustainable management of resources for the mutual benefit of people in the LMB". To achieve this, criteria for prioritising projects and activities in the forestry/watershed management sector have been identified. Eligible projects are those that: (i) reinforce the MRC's mandate and strategic direction; (ii) have significance and mutual benefit to LMB countries; (iii) stimulate regional (trans-boundary) co-operation; (iv) incorporate cross-cutting themes —environment, people centred development, poverty alleviation, livelihood generation, gender issues; (v) strengthen capacity of forestry institutions to resolve regional watershed management problems, as elaborated in the Mekong River Basin Diagnostic Study; and (vi) identify, document and disseminate "best practices" in forestry and watershed management, through links to global, regional and national initiatives.

viii) The role of Mekong River Commission

Specific environmental and socioeconomic conditions in the watershed management and forestry sectors set these sectors apart from other Commission activities. An explicit and distinct approach is needed to deal effectively with these sectors. This has implications for the Commission, as well as for its collaborating institutions in the four riparian countries. These include: (i) the need to balance forest conservation, forest exploitation and

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development/utilization issues; (ii) the need for clear definition of public service and private enterprise roles in forestry; (iii) the need for clear definition of evaluation criteria; (iv) priority of human resources development, stakeholder consultation and participation; (v) consideration of budgetary and other institutional implications.

Substantial improvement of the Commission's performance in the sector can be either be achieved through gradual, organic improvements, or through a more aggressive review and re-orientation. Given the magnitude of the environmental problems in upper catchment areas throughout the LMB, and the increased attention paid by international aid agencies who support a wide range of regional projects related to the forestry and watershed management sector, the Commission needs to significantly increase its focus on this sector. A more pro-active role is required to avoid being marginalised by the international aid agencies, upon whose funding MRC depends.

In addition, the MRC needs to place its role in forest and watershed management activities in perspective, and align itself with other stakeholders engaged in these sectors. MRC needs to leverage its activities in collaborative partnerships with governments, civil society and the private commercial sector. This approach requires MRC to engage the major stakeholders in a broader dialogue and strategy formation that goes beyond forests and watersheds, and fosters a full vetting of ideas and strategies, deliberate consultations and advice-seeking on a wide range of related topics.

The current staff compliment within MRC's forestry unit is insufficient. The lack of multi-disciplinary skill base is a major constraint affecting MRC's performance as well as that of other agencies in the region's forestry and watershed management sectors. Solving this dilemma will have important ramifications for MRC's human resource planning, personnel policy and recruitment procedures. Hiring of additional foresters will not lead automatically to increased focus by MRC's Forest Unit on people's participation in forestry.

The main areas where a regional approach can strengthen and accelerate forestry and watershed management include: (i) information exchange; (ii) harmonisation of legislation; (iii) research and studies on watershed management: (iv) regional awareness programmes and campaigns; (v) forest conservation; (vi) control of illegal logging and transborder wood trade.

MRCS principal role is to promote, co-ordinate and manage a regional watershed management forestry programme. It will undertake to: (i) assist NMCs with the formulation of Project Identification Notes (PINs); (ii) raise funding from donor-agencies for basin-wide projects, (iii) seek agreements of the individual riparian countries on projects; (iv) hire consultants through established recruitment procedures; and (v) provide technical oversight and supervision for project implementation.

In adopting this role MRC should: (i) adopt a more "client focused", "service oriented", "demand driven" approach to working in the forestry and watershed management sectors; (ii) engage in dialogue and collaboration with relevant line agencies in the four LMB countries to identify and document issues and constraints facing these sectors; (iii) limit its role in forestry and watershed management to activities which complement and build upon the achievements of past and current activities in these sectors; and (iv) develop its experience, capacity and credibility as an agency which can respond effectively to regional forestry issues, before assuming a more active role in the design and coordination of appropriate responses to the issues constraining forest and watershed management.

ix) Action Plan

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It is recommended that MRC initiate a process aimed at adopting a more pro-active role in regional forest and watershed management. This process is outlined below.

Step 1: Establish Forestry and Watershed Management Programme Coordination Unit to guide MRC's involvement in the forestry and watershed management sectors of the Lower Mekong Basin.

Step 2: Initiate dialogue with NMCs and national line agencies responsible for forest and watershed management.

Step 3: Conduct a regional review and assessment of LMB forestry and watershed management, aimed at identifying:

� regionally significant issues and constraints to forestry development, and � current and planned actions being taken to address these issues and constraints. � potential

Step 4: Review constraints and activities to identify common technical themes, cross-border issues, etc. and in collaboration with the 4 National Mekong Committees, develop a program of priority activities to be undertaken over a 5 year period - 5 year action plan. The program should be based on proposed national activities, consolidated to eliminate duplication of effort, and adapted to strengthen or broaden their regional significance.

Step 5: Seek agreement of the national agencies in the four countries on programme content and execution arrangements and commence implementation. Implementation of program elements by the line agencies in those countries which have demonstrated experience, capability and leadership in a particular field of activity.

For example:

� Thailand-land use planning and commercial tree plantation development; � Viet Nam-forest land allocation and protection contracts; barren hills reforestation; � Lao PDR-natural forest management and participatory forest management; � Cambodia-forest inventory and growth modelling; systems to monitor and control of

commercial logging in natural forests.

Step 6: Follow-up with periodic meetings, field visits, interactive website, E-mail forums, etc to:

� present and discuss findings, implementation problems, etc. � initiate regional training programme � develop personal relationships between officials of national agencies � increase awareness, understanding and appreciation of regional forestry issues; and � foster attitude shifts toward regional co-operation on solving common problems, etc.

A key step in implementing this process, is the establishment of an MRC Forestry and Watershed Management Programme Coordination Unit. This unit would replace the present MRC Forestry Unit with a wider range of skills and activities, as outlined in the main report.

Effective implementation of the Forestry and Watershed Strategy and Action Plan also depends on the joint participation of the MRC's staff and the staff of relevant line agencies in the four LMB countries. Although the process of implementing the strategy will be initiated by MRC, it will rely on continuing collaboration with, and positive contribution to, the work programmes and country strategies of the national line agencies. Key to the programme's

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success is the development of a sense of "ownership" among the participating line agencies.

1 BACKGROUND

1.1 Introduction to Strategy Study

Over the years the Mekong River Commission (MRC) has paid substantial attention to natural resources management. Deforestation and the ensuing environmental degradation of natural resource base are widespread problems in the Lower Mekong Basin. Both Thailand and Viet Nam have seen major reductions in their forest areas, which now stand at respectively 16% and 25% of their total basin area. Lao PDR (40%) and Cambodia (58%) still have extensive forested areas, although these areas are under increasing pressure. Current annual deforestation rate ranges from 0.4% in Cambodia to 0.8% in Viet Nam (FCMP 1999).

The ongoing losses in forest cover in the Lower Mekong River Basin (LMB) over the past

decades and the emerging adverse trends in the watersheds1 are issues of international concern. Widespread deforestation is causing increasing water runoff, soil erosion, siltation in rivers and wetlands, increasing rates of occurrence and severity of floods, landslides and droughts, loss of biodiversity, fisheries depletion, and damage to agricultural and irrigation systems. These impacts are often transboundary in nature, especially affecting downstream areas. The physical and natural resources of the LMB watersheds provide goods and services to communities, including: protecting water sources; minimising the risk of floods by attenuating run-off, protecting urban environment and infrastructure (premises and transport facilities). This has prompted the LMB governments to embark on major programmes to

address the fundamental issues linked to upland watershed deterioration2.

In the 1980s, a number of donor agencies started to focus their attention on watershed management and forestry issues in the Lower Mekong Basin. FAO carried out three regional watershed projects in Asia (RAS/81/053; RAS/85/017; and RAS/86/107, these studies excluded Cambodia and Laos at that time). The regional projects addressed the policy, institution and operational linkage of watershed issues in Viet Nam and Thailand. These projects underlined the importance of drafting unambiguous polices and strategies to reverse the present trends of watershed degradation. In addition, the results highlighted the need for:

� a high level of inter-sectoral planning and co-ordination;

� intrinsic knowledge of watershed management practises and their applicability,

� consideration of the following factors in planning interventions:

� biophysical and socioeconomic conditions in the area;

� carrying capacity of upper watersheds;

� basic needs of indigenous communities; and

� land tenure and use rights.

Over the last years, the MRCS has carried out a number of watershed management and forestry projects. The institutional capacity building due to these projects, particularly relating

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to watershed management has already provided substantial benefits to the riparian nation's Forestry Departments. These projects, however were carried out without a programme framework; nor did the MRCS create the structure for broad stakeholder participation.

In 1991, the then Interim Mekong Committee commissioned the Tejwani study on watershed management in the Lower Mekong Basin and undertook the Watershed Assessment for Elaboration of a Management Programme (basinwide) (MKG/R.8009). The project was expected to lead to a priority list of watershed areas in urgent need of corrective interventions, together with proposals for pilot projects to be implemented (Tejwani 1991). For reasons which could not be ascertained, these pilot projects were not identified.

Tejwani's report, however included a number of IMC specific recommendations on institutional and operational needs of watershed management. With regard to institutions these could be achieved by assessing and evaluating the technology developed/applied within the four NMCs; training and manpower management; and intra/inter departmental co-operation. With regard to operational needs, it was recommended that a number of technology packages would be needed.

To enable the MRCS to co-ordinate and programme its watershed and forestry activities, there is an urgent need to draw up a strategic framework for the preparation and implementation of an MRC medium and long-term watershed management and forestry programme.

1.2 Objectives, Approach & Methodology

1.2.1 Goal and study objective

The main goal of the Study is to draw up a strategic framework for the preparation and implementation of an MRC medium and long-term watershed management and forestry programme. Such a programme would aim to protect the local people's life, agricultural production and infrastructure from serious damages in the catchment areas. The immediate objective of the Strategy Study is therefore to design a basin-wide strategy for developing the Lower Mekong Basin within a long-term framework and corresponding Action Plan.

Whilst a first Strategy Study outline of 1994 largely focused on environmental issues related to the watershed and forestry sector, the signing of the 1995 Agreement and the outcome of the UNDP 1997 Support to the Mekong River Commission has led to the need for a redesign of the Strategy Study. The 1997 UNDP Support to the Mekong River Commission project recommended the Commission that emphasis in all its projects be given to public participation as an absolutely critical component of the planning process. In addition, it noted that although socio-economic development issues are at the centre of the 1995 Agreement, these have thus far not sufficiently been reflected in the various proposed projects. The statements and ensuing recommendations have led to a revision of the scope of services of the Strategy Study, with public participation and gender issues now emerging as key areas of attention. Stakeholder involvement is required, not only through public participation, but also through increased level of commitment from the NMCs for their involvement.

The current Strategy Study design therefore has an added focus on social and public participation issues. Additional inputs are particularly associated with participation and gender issue experts involvement; evaluation of ethnic minority situations and requirements and Strategy Study review by a Steering Committee, and through a Basin-wide Workshop.

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1.2.2 Approach

i) Riparian experts

To ensure that the Strategy addresses sector issues which are relevant to the four LMB countries, the MRCS appointed riparian experts from the LMB countries: Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Viet Nam to carry out a detailed review of the watershed management/forestry sector in their respective countries as baseline for the Strategy Study.

ii) Steering Committee

To facilitate high level endorsement of the results of the Strategy Study, a high level Steering Committee was appointed. The Steering Committee is comprised of one Senior Government Official of the respective government institutions as representatives of the four countries to provide assistance and guidance in achieving the Strategy Study.

The Steering Committee met with the consultants on 12 November, 1999 to review the Interim Report, and Outline of the Strategy and Action Plan.

iii) Workshop

In order to attain the consent of all stakeholders a regional consultation workshop was held on 18 November, 1999 in Vientiane to present the outline of the Strategy and Action Plan. In addition to representation from the NMCs and associated sector line agencies, a wide range of institutions with a focus on natural resources management, environmental management and land use planning participated.

iv) Review of documents

A large number of strategic documents which the MRCS has recently commissioned have been reviewed. These include: Integrated Land and Water Use for Sustainable Agricultural Development in the Lower Mekong Basin (1996); Mekong River Basin Diagnostic Study (1997); Preparatory Study for the Water Utilisation Plan (1999). The consultant also reviewed the regional reports of the (ADB-funded) Poverty Alleviation & Environmental Management in Greater Mekong Subregion Watersheds Project (1999). The gender and participation consultant reviewed some additional documentation including: Guidelines on Mainstreaming Gender in Water Resources Development in the Lower Mekong Basin (1998); and Checklists for Integrating Gender in the Project Management Cycle (1998).

v) Visits to Riparian Countries

Although the majority of the team's work consisted of drafting the Strategy Study at MRCS headquarters in Phnom Penh, visits were made to the capital cities of the four LMB countries in order to meet with NMCs, riparian experts and representatives of agencies responsible for forestry and watershed management.

vi) Limitations and constraints

During the execution of the study, the following issues were noted:

� language capabilities impose limitations on quality and quantity of information, and on the timing of data acquisition;

� insufficient time was available to test the validity and accuracy of data; � focus of national institutions in the four LMB countries is on national issue-not on

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regional issues.

1.2.3 Methodology

Although watershed degradation is prevalent in most upland areas of the entire Greater

Mekong Sub-basin, the geographical scope of this study is limited to the LMB3. This implies that the Strategy Study has assessed forestry/watershed issues in four riparian countries only: the Kingdom of Cambodia, Lao PDR, the Kingdom of Thailand and the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam. The two upper basin countries: the People's Republic of China and Myanmar have not been included as they are currently not signatories to the MRC Agreement.

GIS overlays (derived from the SDC-funded, and MRC coordinated, Watershed Classification project (WSC) were used to correlate watershed classification with forest cover (derived from the GTZ-funded, and MRC coordinated, Forest Cover Monitoring Project) and protected areas in the Lower Mekong Basin. Also, other relevant data sets such as population density were consulted. This allowed the consultant to undertake a comprehensive assessment of socioeconomic and biophysical conditions of the lower Mekong sub-basins. Data utilised in this assessment include: (i) surface area; (ii) forest cover (1993-1997); (iii) forest reduction over period 1993-1997; (iv) occurrence of watershed

classes I-V and percentage of Class I + II4; (v) percentage of watershed under protective status; (vi) percentage of Class I and II areas without forest cover; and (vii) population densities.

Data on hydrology (catchment discharges), water quality and water resources were not reviewed in any detail due to budget (and staffing) constraints. The study team was composed of a watershed management specialist/team leader; forestry expert; socio-economist; and a gender and participation specialist. The team would have benefited from contributions from a hydrologist and a GIS/database specialist.

Based on these data sets, sub-basins were identified which have major parts of their surface area under watershed Class I and II, and which are void of forest cover. These sub-basins/watersheds are classed as "priority areas" in the Action Plan, subject to further analysis of such parameters as: catchment discharge rates; land tenure; land use practices; accessibility (afforestation requires cost-effective logistical interventions); and trans-boundary watershed issues.

The MRC watershed classification system is based on the methodology developed by the Watershed Classification Committee under the National Environmental Board for advice on technical aspects to support land use legislation. It is based on a number of geophysical features such as elevation, slope, land form, soil type and geology. In using the watershed classification system to select critical watersheds and to plan remedial interventions, planners have found that the selection criteria must be broad enough to capture a combination of biophysical and socioeconomic factors which impact on watershed and forestry management. Application of these watershed criteria to broad geographic areas, which encompass a variety of characteristics may lead to inappropriate interventions. The use of broad criteria to evaluate individual sub-basins enables meaningful comparative evaluations for selecting priority areas and designing appropriate combinations of bio-physical and socio-economic interventions.

Close examination of the data sets, did reveal some major discrepancies on a number of

vital statistics such as surface areas on the four LMB countries5. It is recommended that these deficiencies be addressed as a matter of priority by MRCS' Technical Support Unit. The consultant also noted that socio- and economic indicators could not be used to link

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poverty aspects with critical watersheds as the MRC socioeconomic data base is not covering the enter LMB area yet. Also, the validity and accuracy of GIS data (and databases in general) could not be checked.

1.3 Watersheds as Basic Planning Units

The 100 + LMB sub-basins comprise large geographical areas. Based on the single criteria of forest cover, it would appear that the entire area requires actions aimed at increasing forest cover. Needless to say that a generalisation at such a level of physical planning would not suffice, and that indeed the priority for watershed interventions should be considered on a catchment (and even micro-catchment) level. Such resolution of detail is, however, not feasible given the time frame and the resources allocated for this Strategy Study. Also, the riparian reports differ widely in their attempts to prioritise catchment areas, with only one country presenting details (data and maps) below sub-basin level.

By definition, watersheds are topographically delineated area that are drained by stream systems. This implies that they are hydrological units, but at the same time also represent socioeconomic political units for planning and management of the natural resources. At a local level, the size of the watersheds is determined by the perception of the local communities, which does not always follow biophysical parameters.

Watershed management is the process of formulating and carrying out actions involving the management of resources in a watershed to provide goods and services without adversely affecting the soil and water base.

In the context of this Strategy Study watersheds are considered as the physical units within which natural processes take place. At the same token they are logical natural planning units for agricultural, forestry, environmental and socioeconomic development. The ramifications of these developments are no longer confined to a small areas, but need to be analysed in a broader context as they affect wider regions.

One may question the inclusion of forestry and forest resources as topics in this Strategy and Action Plan for Watershed Management, when other land uses-notably agriculture-also cover large areas of the basin. The reason lies in the fact that forest cover (or its absence), particularly in the upland, and headwaters of Mekong river sub-basins, has the greatest impact on the basin's hydrological and environmental functions. During the past three decades forest loss and degradation has resulted in serious economic, social and environmental consequences. Examples include-more frequent floods and droughts, water and forest products shortages, land degradation and loss of agricultural productivity. Recognising these problems, MRC has given equal footing to both Forestry and Watershed Management in developing the Terms of Reference (ToR) for the Strategy and Action Plan.

1.4 Strategy and Action Plan Report Structure

Chapter 1 presents the purpose and objectives of the Watershed Management and Forestry Strategy and Action Plan and the approach and methodology adopted. This is then followed by Chapter 2, which presents a regional diagnostic overview of the conditions and trends with regard to the watersheds and forests in the LMB. Chapter 3 identifies the major obstacles and challenges to promote sound watershed management and sustainable forestry. Chapter 4 then presents the main rationale for the Strategy; its importance and

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relevance with other MRCS supported activities. The Strategic objectives are presented in Chapter 5. Leading on from this chapter, Chapter 6 then presents the Programme Components and the Main Focal Areas. Chapter 7 discusses the criteria to be adopted for selecting individual projects in support of the Strategy, as well as EIA requirements. The role of MRCS is elaborated in Chapter 8, whilst the Action Plan is outlined in Chapter 9. Implementation arrangements are discussed in respectively Chapter 10. Finally, Chapter 11presents tentative costs and financing requirements.

1 Please note that the terms catchment and watershed in this report are used as synonyms, although strictly

speaking a catchment is an area drained by a river system and a watershed is the divide (mountain ridges) between two adjacent river systems.

2 The Planning and Investment Ministry of Viet Nam recently announced to earmark VND 318 billion to replant some 5 million ha of forest, Viet Nam News, 25 June 1999.

3 The GMS comprises Cambodia. Lao PDR, Myanmar, Thailand, Viet Nam, and Yunnan Province of PRC.

4 WSC 1: Protected or conservation forest and headwater source: Protected forest areas that include the

headwaters of rivers. These areas are usually at high elevations, leave very steep slopes and should remain under permanent forest cover. WSC 2: Production forest: protection and/or commercial forests with soul and water conservation restrictions: usually, a high elevations with steep to very steep slopes. Land forms usually result in less erosion than WSC 1. The areas may be used for grazing or crop production if accompanied by protection measures.

5 For instance the MRC/UNEP Mekong River Basin Diagnostic Study (1997) presents some basic statistics on

watershed area by country, and their share to the total LMB area. Also the Forest Cover Monitoring Project presents such statistics. Data discrepancies between die MRC/UNEP, die FCMP and the latest WCP data

differ up to 5000 km2 per country.

Go to Next Part Back the Table of Contents

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2 GENERAL CONDITIONS AND TRENDS OF THE WATERSHEDS AND FORESTRY SECTOR IN THE LMB

2.1 Watersheds

For the purpose of this Strategy Study, the consultant has reviewed the available data on

106 major (LMB) sub-basins, compiled by the WCP Office in Vientiane6. Figure 1 shows the location and quality of watersheds in the Lower Mekong Basin. Figure 2 shows the location of the 106 sub- basins.

The general physical characteristics of LMB watersheds are presented in Table 1, whilst country by country data is presented in Table 2. Data for Cambodia, Laos and Viet Nam are based on the Watershed Classification Project (WSC) and are derived from Landsat TM Satellite imagery of March 1993 and 1997. The WCP data base for Thailand is not complete and therefore the consultant used data supplied in the Thailand riparian expert's country report.

Figure 1 shows that in Laos, Cambodia and Viet Nam7 30% of the watersheds are either Class I or Class II. From a national perspective, Laos has by far the highest percentage of Class I + Class II areas (55%), followed by Thailand (14%), Viet Nam (13%) and Cambodia (4%).

Of more interest for the formulation of a Strategy and Action Plan is the data on forest cover in Class I and Class II areas. According to WSC definitions, Class I areas consist of upland and headwater areas with very steep slopes and rugged land forms, deemed critical for land and water resource management. These areas, which include the headwaters of major river systems, should be maintained under permanent forest cover and be classified as protected or conservation forest. Class II areas are usually also found at high elevation, and, although important for land and water conservation, these are generally less susceptible to soil erosion. The most suitable land use should be production forest, protection and/or commercial forests with soil and water conservation restrictions. These areas may also be used for grazing or crop production, if accompanied by strict protection measures.

In 1997 FCMP data showed 22.2 million ha of the lower Mekong basin to be covered in forest, out of a total basin area of 61.9 million ha–i.e. 35.8% forest cover. If all forest were to be found in Class I and Class II areas, there would be little reason for concern. However as Table 2 shows, large areas of Class I and II have been encroached upon, and are no longer covered with forest. These recent forest losses in the upper catchments are likely to cause major environmental impacts-both in the uplands and in downstream areas.

Table 1 - Watershed classes and their surface areas by country

Cambodia 1) Laos 1) Thailand 2)

Viet Nam 1)

Classes Area (ha) % Area (ha) % Area (ha) % Area (ha) %

Class I 84 300 1 3 769 681 18 27 912 2 105 768 2

Class II 538 887 3 7 572 256 37 166 006 10 712 362 11

Class III 889 325 6 3 412 856 17 217 975 13 780 968 12

Class IV 2 731 437 17 3 042 406 15 468 775 29 1 125 618 17

Class V 11 373 956 73 2 706 425 13 751 837 46 3 837 256 58

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Legend 1) WCP database Vientiane, September 1999

2) Tangtham (1992)

Table 2 - Watershed classes I and II and surface area withouthaving forest cover by country in the Lower Mekong Basin

Legend 1) WCP database Vientiane. September 1999

2) Tangtham (1992)

3) During the proposed WSC Phase 3 Thailand will be covered, figures were therefore not available

It can be concluded that Laos has the largest domain of critical areas (Class I and Class II watershed areas void of forest cover) which would justify immediate interventions to arrest further watershed deterioration. Over 20.6% of the entire country, or 37.2% of the watershed Class I + II areas combined, is classified as critical.

Appendix 1 presents a general overview of the following main characteristics of these LMB sub-basins:

� surface area

� forest cover (1993-1997 - FCMP data)

� forest reduction over period 1993-1997

� occurrence of watershed classes I-V and percentage of I + II

� percentage of watershed under protective status

� percentage of Class I and II areas without forest cover

The following main conclusions can be drawn:

1. Twenty-six out of the 106 sub-basins (amounting to some 25 % of all sub-basins) have over 50 % of the surface area classified as Class I and II. In three of these sub-basins, the combined Class I+II surface areas amounts to over 90% of the watersheds. These sub-basins, all located in Laos, are Nam Suong (94 %), Nam Tham (93 %), and Nam Tam (90 %).

2. Total forest area in 1993 was 214 299 km2, by 1997 this was reduced to 209 661 km,

which constitutes a reduction of 4638 km2 (2%). In two sub-basins (Nam Hinboun and Haui Chanot) areas under forest cover have increased slightly (1%).

Total 15 618 563 20 503 693 1 632 506 6 561 987

Cambodia 1) Laos 1) Thailand 2) Viet Nam 1)

Classes Area (ha) % Area (ha) % Area (ha) % Area (ha) %

Total 553 506 3.5 4 274 691 20.6 N / A3) 509 410 7.5

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3. Fourteen out of the 20 sub-basins have over 60% of their surface area within Class I + II areas, which are currently unprotected. Protected forest in the remaining six sub-basins (with 60% of their surface area falling in Class I + II), varies from 2-11% only.

4. Sixteen sub-basins in Laos have substantial parts (> 50%) of their Class I + II areas void of forest cover. Important (in terms of large surface area) sub-basins which are seriously denuded comprise Nam Suong (83%), Nam Sing (79%) and Nam Ou (65%).

5. Four sub-basins have over 50% of their surface area classed as "protection". These sub-basins are all located in Lao PDR: Nam Nhiam (53%), Nam Nhamg (63%), and Se Bang Nouan (66%) which have varying amounts of combined Class I + II area. Whereas the protected areas of Nam Nhiam and Nam Nhamg perform important catchment protection functions (with a combined Class I + II area >50%); Se Bang Nouan protection function is of little significance (Class I + II: 12%).

6. Population densities vary from an average 5.6 people per sq.km. in Nam Cadinh sub-basin to 349 people per sq. km. in the Delta sub-basin. With the exception of Nam Mae Kok, Nam Mae Kham, Nam Mae Ing and Nam Sonk, all of which have population densities of > 85, the sub- basins in Laos predominantly have population densities in the order of 20 people per sq. km.

7. According to FCMP (1999) there are 11.3 million ha of degraded forests (shrubland) in the LMB. Some 70 % of these degraded shrublands (> 8 million ha) is located in Laos, which also has the highest percentage of Class I and II areas in the LMB. Increasing exploitation of these wood shrubland could lead to uplands being stripped of their

protective cover, which in turn could lead to severe soil erosion8. In addition to the 11 million ha of degraded land, some 3.4 million ha of moderately to severely degraded evergreen, semigreen and deciduous forests exists. If pressures continue, these forest patches could end up as shrubland.

2.1.1 Transborder critical watersheds

Table 3 shows in bold the most critical transborder watersheds, having xx% of their surface area in Class I + II and their adjacent watershed areas in neighbouring LMB countries.

Table 3 - Major critical LMB transborder sub-basins

Cambodia Laos Thailand Viet Nam

Name of watersheds

Se Kong

Se San

Stung Sre Pok

Prek Te

Prek Chhlong

Stung Sangke

Stung Sisophon

Stung Sreng

Se Kong

Stung Sangke

Stung Sisophon

Nam Mun

Se Kong

Se San

Stung Sre Pok

Prek Te

Prek Chhlong

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Legend 1) WCP database Vientiane. September 1999 and riparian country studies, September 1999

2.1.2 Land use

Recent trends in land use are presented in Tables 4 and 5 below. Table 4 shows forest cover trends between 1975 and 1993. Thailand has experienced an annual forest loss of 4.25 % and lost over three quarters (76.5 %) of its forest cover during the 20 year period.

Viet Nam lost a fifth (21.6 %) and Laos 13 %. Cambodia recorded the least loss at 7%.9

Table 4 - Forest cover trends in LMB Countries, 1975 -1997

Source: FCMP 1999

Table 5 shows that Thailand has succeeded in halting the expansion of agricultural land, while Laos has recorded a substantial decrease in agricultural land. This is attributable to

governmental action to discourage shifting cultivation10. While Cambodia recorded an 8.14% increase Over the period, this represents an average annual growth rate of 1.63%; which is considerably less than preceding years. It also has to be borne in mind that the political situation in Cambodia until recently has not permitted government to enforce land use regulations in many upland areas.

Table 5 - Agricultural land use trends in LMB, 1993-1997

Source: FCMP 1999

Stung Sen

Ta Las

Nam Nun

Nam Mun

Nam Mun

Nam Nun

1975 (Ha) 1993 (Ha) 1997 (Ha) % Annual Change 1975-

1993

% Annual Change 1993-1997

Thailand 5 292 260 3 052 879 2 990 087 4.25 0.42

Laos 9 864 022 8 771 016 8 544 584 0.73 0.53

Viet Nam 1 943 619 1 681 105 1 615 670 1.2 0.81

Cambodia 9 816 343 9 292 119 9 092 093 0.39 0.44

1993 ('000 Ha) 1997 ('000 Ha) % Change over period

Thailand 148 831 148 747 -0.56

Laos 47 138 29 563 -37.27

Viet Nam 37 461 38 281 2.18

Cambodia 33 764 36 513 8.14

Total

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2.1.3 Land tenure

Whilst in principal the majority of LMB forest land belong to the State, legislation is now in place in each country to facilitate private and/or group tenure. While this offers the opportunity for the official recognition of traditional land use, local land rights of watershed areas are not always fully recognised.

The status of areas which have traditionally been classified as agricultural land are relatively unambiguous but tenure to forest areas or areas designated as "unclassified" or "unused land" are contentious because these areas are largely used for swidden agriculture, with degraded portions of this land being used for grazing. The state seldom takes account of local claims when allocating such land for reforestation, concessions or for settlement.

In Viet Nam, legislation allows forest users the same rights as other individuals and the State may transfer land for long-term stable use under Decree 02/CP (1993). While legislation allows for the individual allocation of both protection forests in less critical areas and of production forest, in practice, very little forest land is allotted to individuals. Only 5% of Vietnamese forest land is allocated to households and this concerns only 1% of people living

in and around forest11.

In Laos, the Land Law (1994) allows for land transfer and the inheritance of land use rights but does not grant title. Most households have claim to their homesteads, with village land being assigned to communal use. Land outside village areas is largely unallocated and the Land Management and Land-Forest Allocation Programme (1996) is currently being carried out in order to restrict deforestation through discouraging shifting cultivation and customary land use activities in restricted forest areas. The target by the end of 1999 is to reduce highland cultivation areas to only 100,000 ha (Thammavongsa 1999).

Cambodian Land Law (1992) allows for the granting of individual and family rights to

agricultural land though the issuing of temporary permits12 The status of traditional forest ranges in the uplands is ambiguous, with much of the land having been allocated as concessions. Such concessions do not take account of local subsistence needs in the forests and local people are frequently forced to over exploit (and degrade) their natural resources or illegally take that which was theirs by tradition.

Thailand is currently in the process of transferring all agricultural land to private ownership. There is, however, no specific legislation which allows for the allocation of forest land. Initial legislation to grant tenure rights to degraded forest in the 1970s was rescinded when it was found that there was a tendency for local farmers to damage forest in order to have it classified as 'degraded' and to obtain tenure. New legislation is being drafted. Faced with a legislative vacuum, the Royal Forestry Department undertakes community-based land use planning to stimulate well-understanding of forest land conservation on a participatory approach.

2.1.4 Forest typology and ecosystems

The forests of the region can be broadly classified into two types, evergreen and deciduous forests, which are further divided into many sub-types.

Partly because of the long period of political instability and insecurity of the remote forested areas, most of the LMB upper reaches have retained their natural forest cover. Most of the upper catchment area consists of pristine medium altitude evergreen forest, semi-deciduous forest, lowland and medium attitude forests on limestone, pine forests and montane grassland. Forest types therefore differ according to altitude, edaphic and climatological

Page 5 of 16

conditions (especially the length of the dry season).

Common species of the lowland and medium altitude evergreen forest belong to the Dipterocarpaceae family and include Shorea vulgaris, Dipterocarpus alatus and D. intricatus. Within the Indo-Malayan biological realm, the Cambodia's and Laotian lowlands comprise some of the last remaining stands of lowland rainforest which constitutes a forest resource of high biodiversity value, although the level of endemism within lowland evergreen forest is unknown.

The LMB forests belong to the Indo-Malayan (biological) Realm, extending from Pakistan to Papua New Guinea. Within this realm the following three main subunits are discerned, as shown in Table 6.

Table 6 - Main biological features of three prevailing sub Indo-Malayan-units within LMB

Adapted after Clarke 1999

2.1.5 Biodiversity and protected areas

The lowland and medium altitude forest formations support a rich assemblage of flora and fauna species, with a number of endemic species (Ashwell 1997). The tropical evergreen and semi-evergreen rain forests of the LMB are floristically very rich and, including other habitats, the region has an estimated number of vascular plants totalling more than 45,000 species (Davis el al. 1995), of which 12-15,000 occur in this region. According to a recent study by the World Bank (Braatz 1992), Cambodia has an estimated 8,500 higher plant species, of which about 15 % are endemic. Due to a paucity of detailed studies in the region, exact figures are lacking, and new studies are likely to turn up many novelties. Due to rapid development (including accelerated rates of deforestation), most areas of lowland forest in LMB have disappeared or been severely degraded. The headwaters of some LMB basins such as the Stung Chinit watershed area in Cambodia represents one of the last virtually intact large contiguous stands of LMB lowland forest, and possibly in Indochina as a whole (D. Ashwell, pers. comm.).

The LMB governments have put in place legal, institutional, financial and technical resources for protected areas management. So far 78 reserves (national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, etc.) have been established in the LMB covering 7.7 million ha (constituting 12% of the LMB

Bio-units Location and main biological features

Annamese Mountains

Two mountain blocks in Viet Nam on the Dak Lat Plateau and around Ngoc Linh Mountain. The unit extends marginally into Lao PDR. Montane evergreen forest predominates; some tropical wet evergreen and semi-evergreen forest occurs at lower elevations. Patches of coniferous forest and moss forest are found on the highest peaks.

South China All land east of the Red River Delta in Viet Nam. Smaller areas of forest occurred on limestone, mangrove forest, freshwater swamp, subtropical broadleaf forest, subtropical pine forest and montane deciduous forest.

Indochina A large unit that includes plains, upland terrain and valleys of the Mekong, Chao Phraya and Salween Rivers. It extends over most of Thailand, Lao PDR, and Cambodia. The unit extends from tropical region near sea level to temperate sub-alpine regions, resulting in a broad range of vegetation types, including dry dipterocarp.

Page 6 of 16

surface area). Strategic plans would need to be developed within a national framework for integrating development and environment conservation.

2.1.6 Hydrology

With a catchment area of some 800,000 km2, the Mekong River constitutes the world 21st

largest river system with a total run-off of some 475,000 m3, and 12th longest among the rivers in the world. As a geological and ecological entity, the LMB is rather distinct from the narrow valley which forms the Mekong River upper stretches in Yunnan Province in China. Passing along the Gaoligong and Rus mountain ranges, the river is predominantly snow-fed, with its headwaters starting at an altitude of over 6,000 m. In the lower reaches, the river changes to a sluggishly moving river, predominantly fed by a highly seasonal tropical rainfall regime. Its river flow is grossly uneven: in the LMB, the flood season which last from June-December accounts for 85-90% of the total annual water volume. The low flow levels in the lower stretches of the Mekong in the dry season is a major impediment to agriculture and

navigation; whilst annually an area of some 30,000 km2 below Phnom Penh is inundated by floods. Table 7 refers.

Table 7 - Flow characteristics Mekong River

Source: MRCS 1997

2.2 Forests

2.2.1 Forest cover

LMB forests cover 22 million ha, or 36% of the lower Mekong basin (FCMP 1999). Closed canopy evergreen forests account for the largest portion of forest cover – 13 million ha (59%). Closed canopy deciduous forests account for 6 million ha (27%). The remaining 3 million ha (14%) consists of a mosaic of scattered trees, shrubs and openings.

An additional 11 million ha of land (not classified as "forest cover") is covered in low scrub and bush vegetation. Much of this land is former forest, degraded through unsustainable land use practices. There is potential for regenerating some of this land into forest, provided it is protected from fire, grazing and other disturbances.

There is a strong correlation between population density and forest cover, with the more sparsely populated regions of the basin generally having the highest forest cover.

For example, Laos and Cambodia, with population densities of 21 and 49 people per sq. km. respectively, have 40% to 60% forest cover, while more densely populated Thailand and Viet Nam, with population densities of 128 and 224 people per sq. km, have 16% and 25% forest cover respectively.)

A large portion of the remaining forests of the LMB is confined to steep and remote areas. Even in areas where forest cover is relatively high, the quality of the natural forests is often

Cambodia Lao PDR Thailand Viet Nam

Average flow (m3/s) 2,860 5,270 2,560 1,660

Average flow of % of total MRB 18 35 18 11

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poor, with commercially exploitable forests accounting for only 30% of forested land.

2.2.2 Deforestation

During the 2 decades between the mid-1970s and mid-1990s, the region's natural forests declined by 5 million ha, or about 20% (1%/annum). Deforestation rates varied from a high of 4%/annum in Thailand; to 1.2%/annum in Viet Nam; 0.7%/annum in Lao PDR; and 0.4%/annum in Cambodia.

According to the MRC/GTZ Forest Cover Monitoring Project, deforestation rate in the LMB declined to 0.5%/annum between 1993 and 1997. The exception to this trend to lower rates of deforestation was Cambodia, where deforestation increased by 13% between 1993 and 1997 (FCMP 1999).

In the four riparian countries, forest plantations now cover about 2.5 million ha. This area is expanding at an annual rate of 120,000 ha, with Viet Nam and Thailand accounting for most of this activity. However, deforestation still exceeds reforestation in most LMB countries.

2.2.3 Forest functions

In most countries of the LMB forests are classified into three broad categories according to their principle function. Classification is based geophysical factors (elevation, slope, landform) as well as their ecological and environmental values. Generally forests with unique ecological, habitat or recreational value (caves, waterfalls, salt-licks, cloud forests or remnant lowland dipterocarp forest) are classified as "Conservation Forests" or "Protected Areas". Extractive activities are prohibited. "Protection forests" are generally located on steep slopes or at the head of important watersheds, where their watershed protection values exceed their value as a source of forest products. "Production forests" are forests whose main function is sustainable production of commercial wood and non-wood forest products. Commercial timber extraction is limited by minimum diameter and minimum harvest intensity (e.g. harvest only trees > 50cm diameter; harvest limited to < 30% of standing volume).

In many parts of the region, these classifications have been assigned arbitrarily and often have little relation to actual forest use or condition. For example in Cambodia, satellite imagery has revealed commercial logging in many conservation forests. In Viet Nam many State Forest Enterprises have reclassified their former "production forests" as "protection forests" in order to qualify for funding under state subsidised reforestation programs, which were recently restricted to "protection forests".

2.2.4 Socio-economic and cultural forest function

Forest means survival for people living in the forest. They depend mainly for their nutritional and other needs on swidden agriculture and foraging for forest products. Forest conversion, logging, and watershed degradation on a wide scale endanger food production and foraging offtakes. This negatively impacts women of upland ethnic minorities, as well as those of lowland agricultural villages who practise irrigated paddy production in their Na fields and supplement their diet with forest foraging.

Many rural residents regularly use the forest to obtain food and medicine for their own use. Other households use the forest to obtain cash income. Nearly all rural residents use the forest during difficult crop years when drought, insects, or flooding destroy crops. The forest provides a 'safety net', providing food and income in a time of economic insecurity (Ireson 1995).

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Firewood is an essential natural resource without people would not be able to live. The status of firewood resources in the four riparian countries shows large differences. In Cambodia, Thailand and Viet Nam the situation is more critical than in Lao PDR.

Forest protection and sustenance was in the past based on the social Organisation, culture and religious believes of forest communities. The maintenance of rules gave the forest dwellers their identity, security and contributed to their well being.

2.2.5 Wood demand, production and supply

There is a deficit of current, accurate information on fuel wood supply and demand in the LMB. However, recent FAO and ITTO publications: FAO's Asia Pacific Forestry Sector Outlook Study (1998/99); FAO's State of the World's Forests (1997); and ITTO's Review of World Timber Trade (1998) indicate that the continental south east Asia region (of which the LMB is part) consumes most of the wood it produces. The region imports about 10% of industrial roundwood and wood panel requirements; and 50% of sawnwood and pulp requirements. Regional wood exports represent a relatively minor portion of wood production.

There are significant differences between countries of the LMB as illustrated in Tables 8 and 9. Laos and Cambodia both produce wood surplus to their needs, while Thailand and Viet Nam, both import wood to meet domestic requirements.

Table 8 - Summary of wood supply and wood flows in LMB

Table 9 - Lower Mekong Basin industrial roundwood trade

Legend: (1000s M3 rwe per year)

Source: Updated version of Castren (1999) Note: "Other" is mainly countries of the Asia-Pacific Region.

Cambodia

Laos

Thailand

Viet Nam

Wood Surplus (excessive over-logging)

Wood Surplus (almost sustainable)

Wood Deficit (6 000 m3)

Wood Deficit (1 000 m3)

Exports to Thailand & Viet Nam

Export to Thailand & Viet Nam

Imports from Cambodia, Laos

Imports from Cambodia, Laos

E

X

P

O

R

T

E

R

IMPORTERS

Country Cambodia Lao PDR Thailand Viet Nam Other Total

Cambodia X Little 1 500 800 700 3 000

Lao PDR - X 300 100 100 500

Thailand - - X - 500- 500

Viet Nam - - - X 500 500

Other - - 3 200 500 X 3 700

Total - Tittle 5 000 1 400 1 800 8 200

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2.2.6 Impacts of wood supply-demand imbalances

Wood consumption in the LMB is mainly concentrated in Thailand and Viet Nam, which import large quantities of wood products from neighbouring countries. The logging ban implemented by Thailand in 1989 stimulated a major increase in Thai imports of wood from Lao PDR, Cambodia and Myanmar. Viet Nam also imports timber from Cambodia and Lao PDR, mainly for domestic use, but also for processing and transhipment to other countries.

Demand for wood in Cambodia and Lao PDR is so high that it has driven harvesting beyond sustainable limits and encouraged expansion of illegal logging and trans-border wood trade. For example, in recent years, Cambodia's timber harvesting rates were 3 times higher than estimated sustainable levels. There is growing pressure in the LMB to expand forest cutting further into environmentally fragile sites such as the headwaters of watersheds, where deforestation could lead to soil erosion and silting; water deficits and flooding and loss of fertility and agricultural productivity in the LMB.

Similarly Non-Wood Forest Products-medicinal plants, wildlife, rattan and bamboo-are traded in increasing quantities, both within and outside the LMB region. One of the main markets is China, where the expanding economy and increased purchasing power have increased demand for both wood and non-wood products. Although this increased demand provides new opportunities for rural income generation, it also runs the risk of depletion and possible loss of some of the popular species. Trans-border trade between Viet Nam and China has increased hunting and NWFP collections to unsustainable levels. Negative effects of NWFP trade are also felt in Lao PDR conservation areas.

2.2.7 Non-wood products

Throughout the LMB, NWFP fulfil rural people's needs for subsistence and economic development. They take many forms – staple foods, medicines, implements, building materials, etc. Although they are not often quantified in forest inventories and valuations, non-wood forest products are highly valued by rural and forest dwelling people of the LMB. In Thailand for example, research has shown that 5 million forest dwellers are critically dependent on non-wood forest products and a far greater portion of the population derive benefits from these commodities.

Most rural people use timber infrequently – for dwellings, boats, bridges, etc. If they cut timber for sale, they risk punishment as this is illegal in most countries of the region. However the use of NWFP is common in many aspects of daily life, and unlike timber, most NWFP – rattan, bamboo, honey, resins, herbs, etc.– can be collected and sold legally as cash crops.

The major contributions of non-wood forest products are as follows:

� provide material needs, cash income, and employment at levels significant to the rural and national economies of LMB countries.

� Their extraction and utilization represents a non-exhaustive or sustainable from of tropical forest utilization, enhancing the value of intact forests, counterbalancing incentives for deforestation, and offering a chance for the survival of the LMB's forest resources.

Deforestation has reduced the resource base of NWFP. There is a need to conserve the forest resource base, while developing harvesting, marketing, and local processing of non-wood forest products. If no action is taken, the way of life of traditional forest dwellers will be

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lost, along with their knowledge of the use and sustainable management of NWFP. Collaborative efforts are needed in the fields of medicine, agriculture and forestry to improve data on: habitats, sustainable harvest levels, taxonomy, propagation, processing and commercialisation of NWFP.

2.2.8 Forest encroachment and shifting cultivation

In many parts of the LMB, forest encroachment follows logging. Logged areas are burned and forest or scrub bush land is converted to agricultural use – generally planting of unimproved varieties of upland rice, cassava, corn, banana, etc. Crop yields are satisfactory during the first few years, due to nutrients released by burning or decomposition of forest cover, then drop sharply.

In northern Thailand and Viet Nam's central highlands, forest encroachment is often associated with large scale cultivation of cash crops such as cassava, coffee or kenaf. In other parts of the region it is associated with subsistence (shifting) cultivation.

In many parts of the LMB, forests are home to highland ethnic minorities who have made their living in and around the forest for centuries, clearing the forest for farming and collecting subsistence products such as fuel wood, medicinal herbs, food, and construction material. The way of life for these minorities is threatened with rapid commercial development and destruction of the forests.

The principle form of land use in the LMB uplands is shifting cultivation. In itself, shifting cultivation is not an environmentally damaging system. Nor should it be seen as the sole subsistence strategy open to the upland communities. The number of groups relying solely on shifting cultivation is relatively small and limited to minorities living in inaccessible terrain. 13 Instead, many upland dwellers rely on a combination of small irrigated plots of single crop rice (usually traditional varieties), with irrigation being achieved through flooding sections of stream banks or damming streams to produce reservoirs during the rainy season.

There is considerable debate over the role of shifting cultivation in deforestation. For example: MRC's Mekong River Basin Diagnostic Study has identified shifting cultivation as a significant contributor to forest degradation and erosion, which in turn impacts many aspects of the basin's environment.

Others suggest that the impacts of shifting cultivation on forests are directly related to population density, i.e. only where population density has increased to the point where fallow periods are to short to revitalise soils, does environmental damage to forests, soil and water occur.

Shifting cultivation becomes unsustainable once the carrying capacity of the land is exceeded. This may arise from internal factors (natural population increase resulting from lack of family planning or from improved health care resulting in a decline in the mortality rate) or from external factors such as in-migration by lowland farmers or by other tribal groups who are experiencing land shortages in their areas of origin. The area of land available to the group may also decrease because of government action resulting in the re-classification of territorial land for reasons of development projects (particularly hydroelectric schemes), for conservation purposes (gazettement of national parks or wildlife sanctuaries), or to encourage sponsored in-migration.

The following sequence is repeated throughout the LMB – increasing population �

increased land pressure � shortened fallow periods � loss of soil fertility � declining crop

yields � increased erosion and downstream siltation � increased flooding and drought.

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In northern-eastern Cambodia, where population is less than 20 persons per hectare, shifting cultivation is not an environmental problem. However, where population density exceeds this level, land demand increases, and fallow periods are reduced (to 3 to 5 years) and shifting cultivation becomes unsustainable.

The extent of shifting cultivation, and its contribution to deforestation cannot be measured accurately. In Viet Nam, one million ethnic minority people practice traditional shifting cultivation and two million more (mixture of in-migrant Kinh and ethnic minorities) practice semi-shifting agriculture. In northern Laos up to 70 % of households practice shifting cultivation, although only 12 % of southern house holds are involved in this practice. In Cambodia and Thailand, similar trends are evident. The average household requires 1-2 hectares of land per year. Based on the basin's population of 50 million (5-10 million households) and assuming that an average of 25 % of the population engaged in shifting cultivation, the annual area cultivated is estimated to be 2 million ha. Of which an estimated 25 % involves land classified as "forest land" i.e. 500,000 ha.

2.3 NMCs Policies on Watershed Management and Forestry

LMB governments have no specific policies on the integration of upper watersheds into national development but instead follow national directives. Although all LMB governments have policies regarding upland development, no LMB country has a concerted law relating to upland management but instead rely on the implementation of a body of diverse laws to implement policy. There are, however common objectives which can be identified for all countries. These are:

� alleviation of poverty � food security provision � sustainable management of local resources � integration of indigenous communities into the mainstream national socio-economic

development

The principal strategies pursued to achieve these objectives are:

� curtailment of indigenous land use through the elimination of slash and burn. agriculture and/or increased community participation in development activities

� development of rural infrastructure, especially improved roads, potable water and health services in order to increase indigenous participation in the wider society

� promotion of commercial agriculture and forestry production as a 'stimulus' to encourage development.

2.4 Legislative and Institutional Framework

2.4.1 Forestry legislation and institutional arrangements

i) Institutional arrangements

In Cambodia, the Department of Forestry and Wildlife is responsible for forest and watershed management. A watershed management unit was established within this Department of Forestry and Wildlife in 1999. This unit is made up by five technical staff and one coordinator. According to the 1996 environmental law, the Ministry of Environment is

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charged with the protection and conservation of natural resources. It is also managing the 23 protected areas throughout the country, with the DoFW taking responsibility for protection of wildlife outside the gazetted conservation areas.

The Government of Laos has delegated the responsibility for watershed management to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) through its Centre for Protected Areas and Watershed Management. The Centre is mainly a technical set-up mandated with co-ordination and planning of biodiversity and watershed projects; whereas the administration's Provincial Agriculture and Forestry Offices are responsible for project implementation at provincial and district level. Other key national agencies are the State Planning Committee, the Science and Technology and Environment Organisation (now an Agency - STEA), and the Ministry of Industry and Handicraft. The later is a coordinating agency for environmental planning and management across all sectors, including water and forestry resources, the former is involved in hydropower development including catchment protection and management. The State Planning Committee co-ordinates policies among the sectoral agencies. Recently, MAF has set up an Upland Development Unit (for its Shifting Cultivation Programme) which will execute GoL upland policies and is most likely to be come responsible for co-ordination of various agricultural and forestry projects.

In Thailand over 30 agencies take art active interest in watershed management. Although the RFD has a special watershed management division and numerous watershed units at provincial level, so far OEPP is taking a lead role in the planning and implementation of watershed management.

In Viet Nam a plethora of governmental institutions exists; each with their own (often overlapping) mandate. The principal agency is the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD). The key agencies under MARD are: Forest Development Department; Forest Protection Department; and the Department of Fixed Cultivation and Permanent Settlement and Development of New Economic Zones. Other important institutions are the General Department of Land Administration responsible for land administration and land classification, and the Land Cadastral Department (Puustjarvi 1999).

ii) Legislation

Forest legislation is the main instrument for guiding forest sector development in each of the LMB countries. Though there are priorities and plans for the forestry sectors of LMB countries, there is often no clear line of responsibility at Ministry, Department and Provincial levels. A well defined institutional framework with clearly defined duties and responsibilities, for all staff is a prerequisite for improving forestry practice in the LMB.

In the former centrally planned economies–Laos, Cambodia and Viet Nam–forest policies are gradually being realigned, as these countries move toward a more market-oriented economic system. Forestry administration systems remain weak and external development assistance is providing support to strengthen planning capacity and to make long-term forest management more effective and sustainable.

2.4.2 Legislation on land tenure and protected areas

i) Land tenure

Legislation dealing with land ownership varies greatly among LMB countries. In Lao PDR, Article 5 of the Forestry Law 1996 states that although natural forests and associated land is vested in the State, individuals and non-governmental organisations (CBOs) may possess, use, transfer, own and inherit trees and forests planted by them under certain conditions and

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with the State's acknowledgement.

After years of debate on a proposed community forestry bill in Thailand, the final act has yet to be passed. Much controversy is over clauses spelling out land rights to indigenous.

In Viet Nam, Land Law of 1993 and subsequent government decrees enable the long-term leasing of forest land to private enterprises, community groups and individual families for periods that can extend to 50 years and beyond. It is understood that by the end of 1996, GoV/MARD had already allocated 2 million ha of forest land to households and State Forest Enterprises. Average plot-size range from 15,000-20,000 ha for enterprises, 3-20 ha for individual households. It is understood that much progress has already been made in re-classification of nominal forest lands to agricultural land, and that GoV has assured that land re-classification for the project area will be completed in 1997.

Government Decision (GD) 327 (1992) on Policies for the Use of Bare Land, Denuded Hills, Forests, Alluvial Flats and Water Bodies) and subsequent amendments, additions and implementation decrees (Decision No. 556 TTg, 1995) allow the allocation of both Production, and Protection Forests to communities and individuals, whereas Special Use Forest (= sanctuaries, reserves) remain under control by MARD.

The transition from central planning to a market-based system has had major implications on the way forests are managed. Recognised forest holders obtain far-reaching decision-making power regarding forest harvesting and management. This requires individual forest users to have intrinsic knowledge on sustainable harvest levels and reafforestation needs, This, clearly is way beyond the capacities of these forest workers. It would require a change in attitude from the MARD officials from a focus on "forest managers" to "forest extension workers" by providing technical and financial support to forest users or users' groups.

ii) Protected area management

All four LMB have seen a long history in protected area management. However, protected area management in all four countries suffer from a lack of effective enforcement.

In Cambodia a Royal Decree issued on November 1st 1993 entitled Creation and Designation of Protected Areas provides a basic for the development of legislation related to the conservation and protection of biological) diversity. In 1996, the Ministry of Environment framework environment legislation gave statutory authority to the Decree. Cambodia's legislation appears to be least effective. A draft Sub-decree specifying the (management and utilisation) activities that can be undertaken within the protected areas submitted by the MoE to the Council of Ministers in January 1999 was rejected. In absence of this sub-decree, the government recently has issued a logging concession in the proposed buffer zone of the Virachey National Park near the border of Laos and Viet Nam (Phnom Penh Post, September 3-16 issue - 7).

In Lao PDR, biodiversity conservation is provided for in the Forest Law of 1996, and a 1993 Decree that designated the first National Biodiversity Conservation Areas (NBCAs) of which there are 20 at present. In Thailand, a National Park Act (1961), a Wildlife Protection and Preservation Act (1992) and a National Forest Act (1964) have been gazetted. In Viet Nam, biodiversity conservation is addressed in the Law on Environmental Protection 1993, while the Law on Protection of Forests 1972 provides for protected areas.

2.5 Linkage Between Deforestation and Social Consequences

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i) Social consequences of Deforestation

Deforestation leads to disintegration of cultural system and traditional protection of forests. Governments in the riparian countries have reinforced policies with the intention to protect the forest, in which ethnic minorities, practising slash-and-burn farming systems, are encouraged to leave the forest and to resettle in the low lands. Some communities are negatively affected by the top-down introduction of commercial crops, which are promoted by extension workers as a replacement for opium growing. Market prices for these alternative crops are often so low that it is not worthwhile to grow them and sell them.

ii) Gender consequences of Deforestation

Deforestation is leading to a number of negative implications for upland communities, with women being more disadvantaged as a result of the gender division of labour.

� Loss of food security and subsistence economy. Increase in poverty, more cash income to earn (male-migration, marketing, weaving)

� Mal-and undernourishment, in particular of children, and deterioration of health conditions Drinking and irrigation water shortage, pollution of drinking water (drying up of springwells, small rivers)

� Lack of firewood and fodder, longer distances to walk with heavy loads � Male-migration (disintegration of family life, women staying behind responsible for the

subsistence) � Changing division of labour, more workload for women � More inequality in gender relations, lowering of status of women (second marriages of

men) � Disintegration and/or loss of cultural system and traditional protection of forest. � Loss of traditional customary land rights � Loss of access, control and decision making on traditional land use practices � Increasing number of land conflicts between the state and community, or between

wood logging companies and communities.

6 1997 MRC/UNDP Mekong River Basin Diagnostic Study shows a map outlining the sub-basin configuration of

114 areas. The MRC database differentiates in the Delta for seven subcatchment by the same name, whilst the Nam Thong sub-basin is listed twice.

7 Data for Thailand were not yet available

8 Shrubland may yield erosion rates of some 19 tonnes/ha/annum, compared to 3 tonnes/ha/annum under primary forest conditions and > 400 tonnes loss under sloping field croplands (Thai Forestry Sector Master Plan 1993).

9 Cambodia figures should be treated with a great degree of caution because of the absence of accurate data gathering system until recent years.

10 Land recorded as being under 'mosaic of cropping' has decreased by 48% over the relevant period, while

'fixed agriculture' has shown a 9% increase


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11 It should be noted that much of the transferred land is under protection contracts; which disallow the removal

of wood for household use.

12 The granting of land title is an extremely slow process in Cambodia and temporary permits are frequently used a proof of ownership in land transactions.

13 Puustjarvi, 1998, states that the carrying capacity of land under shifting cultivation is between 20 - 40 persons/sq.km.

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3 CONSTRAINTS AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR DEVELOPMENT OF THE FOREST AND WATERSHED SECTORS

In this chapter constraints and opportunities facing future development of the forestry and watershed sectors of the Lower Mekong Basin (LMB) are identified and discussed.

The following 12 constraints were identified. They primarily relate to socioeconomic and land use issues, institutional capacity and forestry and hydropower development, and could impede the implementation of forestry and watershed management projects which LMB government wish to pursue:

� Inattention to socioeconomic issues–poverty, environmental degradation, etc. � Inadequate institutional capacity � Inadequate valuation, revenue collection and benefit sharing of products and services � In-migration and population growth in upper watersheds � Land-use transformation and land use planning � Forest land classification � Forest concession allocation � Logging and log transportation practices � Profusion of regulatory documents � Customary land rights � Gender and participation constraints � Hydropower and irrigation development

The following 10 opportunities were identified. They relate mainly to investment opportunities and strong existing (and emerging) markets for forest products and services, and a strengthening global and community awareness and the desire to adopt a more participatory approach to development. These opportunities and challenges may be contributing to a successful introduction of forestry and watershed management projects.

� Increasing investment trends in forestry and other sectors � Enhanced market prospects for wood and non-wood forest products and services � Availability of various instruments for capturing environmental benefits of forests � Increased ecotourism potential � Increased demand for forest certification � Increased demand for carbon offset trading � Potential for transfer payments from lowland farmers and developers to upland

forestland users � Increasing global and community awareness for environmental and social issues � Increasing demand for participation - forest protection committees, etc. � Increasing devolution of responsibility for forestry and watershed management � Increasing international donor interest

3.1 Constraints to Sector Development

3.1.1 Inattention to socioeconomic issues pertinent to poverty and environmental degradation

It is apparent that excessive rates of forest destruction or damage (and, equally, the failure to create forest resources in localities where they are now scarce) impact disproportionately upon poorer and marginalised groups in societies. Key Mekong River Commission objectives in increasing participation of all stakeholders in resource management and

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economic growth are therefore compromised by unsustainable and exploitative forest use and ill-considered conversion activities. It should be borne in mind that hill tribes are frequently the victims, rather than the perpetrators, of unsustainable land use. Changes in land availability may result from government re-classification of territorial land for reasons of development projects (particularly hydroelectric schemes and the establishment of protected areas), or to encourage sponsored in-migration impacts on indigenous livelihoods by reducing the amount of land available. These forces lead to intensified use of remaining land and decreasing fallow periods, which, when coupled with the lack of incorporation of local needs to break the poverty cycle, lead to increased poverty.

Governmental policies need to adopt a strengthened integrated development approach which encompasses indigenous land rights, increases local access to public services and provides alternative income generation to compensate for decreases in local incomes.

3.1.2 Inadequate institutional capacity

Lack of a sufficient cadre of qualified staff is a persistent problem in most Lower Mekong Basin (LMB) countries which has major ramifications on the agencies' abilities to property design, implement and monitor natural resource programmes. Institutions generally have insufficient capacity or are outmoded to effectively enforce sustainable management of natural resources in watershed areas. This is partly due to the low priority accorded to watershed management in national development agendas. The exception to this situation is Thailand, where a well staffed Watershed Management Division has been established in the Royal Forestry Department. The Division has some 300 staff members including the unit chiefs who are stationed at the various upland watershed management units. The unit heads recruit seasonal technical staff members, if and when required.

In addition, it is noted that government agencies are expected to implement unworkable and impractical policies or targets. Clear examples of these unachievable targets are to be found in all four countries. In Viet Nam the government recently embarked on its "Five Million Ha Reforestation Programme", which amounts to an annual target of 400 000 ha, so as to increase the forest cover to 43% of the country's surface. The current rate of planting is 60,000 ha annually (FAO 1998). Reforestation performance is, however poor, with low survival rates (Morrison and Dubois 1998). In Thailand the Government recently declared its policy and Prospective Plan for Enhancement and Conservation of National Environmental Quality (1997 - 2016) to retain 50% of the country as forested land, with 30% of the country's surface to be designated as conservation forest and the remainder as economic forest (Thongmee et al. 1999). In Laos the Government seeks to rehabilitate 2 million ha of degraded forests over the next 20 years. This target includes 0,5 million ha of afforestation and 16,5 million ha of natural forest regeneration (Pravongviengkham 1999).

Cambodia has 21 industrial forestry concessions covering 4 million ha. The staff involved in controlling forestry concessions activities numbers over 1500 most of whom are located in Phnom Penh and the provincial capitals. Forestry officials depend on forest concessionaires for the transportation and communication facilities which impedes independent policing and monitoring of concession activities.

According to the ADB study on Poverty Reduction & Environmental Management in GMS Watersheds the main hindrance to effective watershed management is the limited recognition that under any policy scenario, local people will be the major decision-makers concerning actual resource use within watersheds. The government organisations charged with forest and watershed management, which enjoy some technical skills and enforcement capacity, are, however sadly lacking in extension services (HCG 1999).

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Insufficient capacity with regard to natural resource management also applies to the National Mekong Committees (NMCs). Their low capacity is a result of lack of a sufficient staff compliment and, in some cases, staff being appointed in inappropriate positions with regard to their qualifications. In passing, it should be noted that the CNMC and LNMC are in a stage of transition, with new staff being recruited. In Laos, the LNMC has just moved to a new building and has submitted its revised mandate to the government for approval.

Table 10 - Key government agencies and NMCs' staff compliment in watershed management

Source: riparian reports. September 1999

3.1.3 Inadequate economic valuation of environmental services provided by watersheds

The cost of watershed deterioration should be evaluated in terms of benefits to public and private sector downstream interests. Increased watershed protection ensures a regularity and predictability of water flow that is vital for the continuance of agricultural and aquacultural activities downstream. This increased predictability and certainty of production at least ensures continued local livelihoods and presents conditions for improvement in crop production.

Severe limitations have been discovered regarding studies on the downstream effects of alterations in water regimes. While the subject is widely discussed, there is a dearth of research on the topic and such studies as do exist arise from impact assessments associated with hydropower projects. There is therefore a pressing need for studies of the downstream effects of deforestation.

Attempts to value forest benefits, generally fail to capture non-market environmental benefits such as soil and water conservation, etc. Generally forest benefits include only timber values. These benefits are often not captured by forest dwellers, nor by local governments. The beneficiaries predominantly include central governments, concession owners, forest products traders, politicians, etc.

The failure to value the external benefits of forests, and to distribute market benefits to local people, adds to the pressure to clear forests and convert them to agricultural crops, which provide more direct benefits to resident communities. To combat this trend, efforts are being made to increase local returns, increase interest in protecting and managing forests. Pre-requisites for this include:

Cambodia Laos Thailand Viet Nam

Number of staff in Watershed Management Units of Forestry Agencies

6 1 300 ?

Field level staff ? ? 46 ?

Total budget ? ? US$ 10 million ?

Total staff compliment NMC (of which experts)14

6(14) 8(16) ? ?

Watershed/forestry management specialist with NMC

1 1 ? ?

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� secure land tenure and resource rights for local populations; and � allowing for the controlled and sustainable harvest of wood and non-wood products

from forests–including those designated as watershed protection forests.

Examples of this principle in action in the LMB include:

� Viet Nam's allocation of forest land under protection contracts, under which households benefit from inter-planting forest trees with cash crops; and

� Lao PDR's relaxation of forest use restrictions for local communities in order to encourage integrated community management of forests for protection and production.

These approaches are also effective in combating encroachment and illegal logging by outside parties. However, attempts to increase financial returns to forestry, in order to improve conservation efforts are likely to work effectively only where land availability and food security are not major constraints. The premise that increasing returns to local forest management will conserve forests weakens, where land use pressure is high. Non-the-less, financial returns to local forest management should be increased whenever possible–particularly if this can be achieved sustainably and at low cost.

Although the statutory royalty rates on timber harvested are in line with international market

prices (e.g. Lao PDR and Cambodia charge an average of $50-$55/m3), the actual revenue collected is much lower due to weak forest revenue collection systems in most LMB countries. In Cambodia, total forest revenue collected by government in 1998 was $4 million.

Based on an estimated (legal and illegal) industrial wood harvest of 3 to 4 million m3, fees

collected amounted to only $1/m3. In Lao PDR, revenue collected on the 1996/97 industrial

wood harvest of 650,000 m3 was $20 million, or an average of $32/m3 – well below the $35 million which should have been collected for the wood harvested. Forest revenue collection on non-wood forest products is equally weak.

3.1.4 Rapid in-migration and population growth in upper watersheds

Lowland population expansion and lack of land are a major 'push' factors in decisions to migrate to upper watersheds, while government policies regarding resettlement also plays a significant part in decisions to migrate, through making land available to migrants.

The central highlands of Viet Nam are a case in point, with the population increasing by 2.3 million people between 1981 and 1990. Between 1990 and 1994, over 100,000 spontaneous migrants entered Dac Lac province and over 90,000 into Lam Dong province in the Central Highlands; with most immigration being attributable to ethnic minorities from the northern uplands moving because of land pressure and to Kinh Vietnamese moving from the lowlands in response to government incentives and the establishment of state forest enterprises and agricultural enterprises.

While the rate of in-migration has slowed, Gia-Lai province is still experiencing inflows of 13,000 per annum (1.6% population increase) and Kontum 5,000 per year (1.9% population increase). The high degree of migration has had a 'knock-on' effect, with indigenous minority groups moving into natural forest land in response to decreasing land availability as a result of in-migration (Jamieson 1996).

3.1.5 Rapid outmigration from upper watersheds and gender consequences

Male migration is increasing in the four riparian countries and has negative impacts on family life and society. Timely participatory land use planning and assessment of local livelihood

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options might avoid the current trend of increasing male migration out of forest areas. Owing to the close connection that highlanders had with the natural environment, economically as well as culturally, migration at the current pace is closely tied to the vanishing of these natural resources and the associated modernisation processes now present in ethnic minority areas.

While external forces disrupting the economy affects the roles of both men and women, men's roles are affected to a greater degree since their traditional roles of hunting, warfare and protection have been rendered redundant and they migrate to the cities to find casual labour. In many forest villages a visitor will only find women and children nowadays as the men have left. Seasonal "survival" migration is a trend all over the world in which in many places also women participate. The extent of female migration depends on the number of other females in the household and the degree of natural resource degradation. The trend of male migration can be found in Viet Nam where a clear feminisation of agriculture in general is traced.

The level of outmigration of the male population could have consequences for proposed forestry and watershed management interventions in these areas.

3.1.6 Land-use transformation

All LMB countries have experienced significant losses in forest cover and increases in land under agriculture since the 1980s. The period 1993-1997 saw a significant slowing in the rate of loss for Thailand from 4.25% to 0.42%. This reflects the successful imposition of logging bans and conservation measures. During this period, Laos and Viet Nam registered approximately a third less annual clearance, while Cambodia saw a 13 % increase in its annual rate.

As the riparian countries have experienced major losses in forest cover, so there have been major increases in land under agriculture; with the decade 1984-1994 seeing significant growth in all four riparian countries in both cropland and permanent pasture. Although the rate of average annual increase in cropland for Viet Nam and Thailand was modest (0.23% and 0.67% respectively), Laos saw agricultural land increase by almost a fifth (18.5%) during the period and Cambodia saw cropland increase by over four fifths with an annual clearance rate of 8.19%. See Table 5 which presents agricultural land use trends in the lower Mekong basin for 1993-1997, based on fixed and shifting agriculture combined.

LMB governments have become increasingly aware of the consequences of deforestation and have taken actions to arrest deforestation which have had a significant effect in recent years. (see section 2.12)

3.1.7 Forest land classification

In many parts of the LMB, forest land classification has been assigned arbitrarily and often have little relation to actual forest land use or condition. In the past, "forest" land was generally considered as the "residual" land use. Often forest land was combined in a category which included "waste land" and "land unsuitable for agriculture". Designation of land as "production forest", "protection forest" and "conservation forest" is a recent phenomenon in many LMB countries. In the past "forest land" was designated as "conversion land" where the forest was logged, cleared and converted to agricultural use.

Examples of failures in forest land classification can be found in all LMB countries, e.g. in Cambodia, satellite imagery has revealed commercial logging in many conservation forests. In Viet Nam many State Forest Enterprises have reclassified their former "production

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forests" as "protection forests" in order to qualify for funding under state subsidised reforestation programs, which were recently restricted to "protection forests".

3.1.8 Land use planning, zoning and conflict resolution

In most LMB countries, the large remaining natural forest areas are public lands. Governments have taken over authority and responsibility for managing these forests from indigenous communities, which traditionally used the forest in accordance with their own laws. As a result, the forest has become even more vulnerable to open-access, common property problems because tribal heads no longer have any strong reason to try and limit shifting cultivation or timber operations.

Problems often arise in identifying the current extent of forests in a particular country or state due to the unreliability of survey data, owing to problems of data collection and collation. The fact that there are often several sources of land use data (Forest Department, Agriculture Department, Land and Surveys Department, Planning Department, etc.) further complicates interpretation of land use.

Recent advances in remote sensing (satellite and aerial photographic images), and computer graphics and digital cartography have served to accelerate some forms of map making. Maps and data should be readily available to ensure transparency in the land use planning and to enable all stakeholders to participate and provide input. There should be in place a mechanism to ensure that the access to the data is open, fair and at a reasonable cost for all actors.

As most countries have identified forests from land use or agricultural capability maps, the boundaries are sometime indistinct and subject to dispute, unless detailed ground surveys are conducted. Furthermore, the extent of village land is often not clear and if not properly surveyed, also subject to change over time as the village land demands increase. Local community-based land-use planning often facilitates conflict resolution within and between villages. Unless the central land codes recognise village jurisdiction over community lands, there will be disputes over boundaries between what the government refers to as state land and what the villages recognise as community land.

The highly centralised, remote and often inappropriate nature of policies and institutions which govern natural resource exploitation and rural development have given rise to difficulties and a number of failed rural development projects. The result has been an imbalance in wealth and opportunities between rural and urban areas, and increased tensions between and within different cultural groups.

The role of government in land use planning and land market reform is to remove regulatory constraints, establish a system of predictable land use planning and land market rules and focus on the provision of information, adjudication of border disputes, enforcement of property rights and valuation and assessment of land for tax purposes.

The current development paradigm is that devolution of responsibility for forested lands to communities and local government units is needed to ensure conservation of natural resources. It is particularly important that land use decisions be the domain of local elected governments that are accountable to local residents. The role for central government in land use decisions would be to set broad policy guidelines. Once devolution of responsibility for resources management takes place, the matter of how decisions will be made (participation, equity and legitimacy) comes into play. The manner in which the decision making process is undertaken should be one which reduces unpredictability. A weak point in devolution is often the absence of a strong judiciary at local level, without which devolution of political authority

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will be subject to misuse. Once responsibility for forest resources administration has been devolved, the role of the central government needs to be limited to policy setting, research and other higher level functions.

3.1.9 Forest concessions

Forest lands in the LMB generally belong to the states. Logging operations have been practised under varying forms of forest concessions. Forest concessionaires are required to follow regulations regarding forest management and silvicultural prescriptions developed by the forestry authorities, who are charged with monitoring and enforcing concessionaire's compliance with the regulations. The system is based on selective felling of commercial trees with diameters greater than a specified minimum cutting size (usually +/- 50cm).

Felling cycles are generally 25 to 35 years, which is estimated to be sufficient for forest regeneration and regrowth. In most countries of the LMB, minimum felling size and felling cycle have been modified, in order to accelerate timber production targets. For example: Cambodia recently adjusted its cutting cycle downward from 35 to 15 years. This has been done at the expense of maintaining long-term forest productivity and environmental benefits.

The forest concession system has not functioned successfully for a variety of reasons. Forest concessions have been allocated without the benefit of transparent competitive bidding process. Forest charges are often below international market value. Accessible forests are depleted through a combination of "over cutting" of valuable timber trees, followed by encroachment into logged over forest areas, which are inadequately protected. Control over forestry operations is universally weak and forest degradation is pronounced.

As a result of the consequences of past unsustainable forestry practices, LMB countries are beginning to take remedial actions. For example, Thailand has banned all logging in natural forests and Viet Nam is restricting natural logging, to permit degraded areas to recover. In all countries of the region increasing efforts are being made to involve farmers and private sector enterprises in forest development and conservation by allocating land to individuals,

households and organisations. In countries with active forest concession15, efforts are being made to re-negotiate concession terms, reassess forest charges and close down concessions found to be in violation of their terms and conditions.

3.1.10 Logging and log transportation practices

In most areas of the LMB, logging and logging road construction do not cause major problems. Rather it is the illegal logging and inability of control it that are the big issues in LMB. None-the- less there is an opportunity for improvement in logging practices, as described below:

Harvesting of wood from natural forests of the LMB is typically by selective felling of trees greater than a specified minimum cutting limit (usually about 50cm). There is little use of cable logging systems, with almost all logs moved to roadside by ground-based systems. Trees are felled and cut to length using power saws. Logs are transported to roadside using tractors or self-loading trucks. From the roadside, larger trucks of various sizes and origins transport logs to processing and marketing points.

Manual felling and cross-cutting of logs still prevails in many parts of the LMB–particularly in mangrove forests. In parts of Cambodia, Laos and Thailand elephants are used to extract logs from the forest. The use of manual logging methods generally results in low productivity, waste and, in some cases, environmental problems. Examples include: manual tree felling resulting in high tree stumps, wasting scarce wood resources. Manually rolling

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and throwing of logs down slopes results in localised destruction of residual forest and formation of "gullies", with accelerated soil erosion.

Forest roads are constructed using a variety of crawler tractors, road graders, tipper trucks and other earth moving equipment. The lack of funding for new road construction and road maintenance led to forest degradation, as SFEs sought to satisfy centrally planned wood production demands from limited areas of forest accessible to roads. This resulted in the

adoption of shortened cutting cycle16, lower minimum cutting diameters, and reduced requirements to retain minimum residual forest stocking. A second problem related to insufficient forest roads is that of excessive hauling distances from stump to forest roadside. In many cases, skidding distances exceed 1 km. The quality of forest roads in many forests is inadequate, with poorly planned, constructed and maintained drainage structures and surfaces. This is often due to the contracting system used, under which the contractor has no incentive to construct permanent roads as he is contracted for a short term-often one year.

Due to its age and poor operating condition, logging equipment that Lao PDR, Cambodia and Vietnam obtained from the former Soviet Union, needs to be replaced The declining log cut from natural forests and increasing reliance on plantation forests to meet wood requirements will be accompanied by a transition to smaller, more mobile logging equipment, capable of year-round operation. A gradual increase in logging mechanisation and increased logging labour rates is expected as a result of changing social conditions and improved economic performance in the LMB countries.

3.1.11 Profusion of regulatory documents

Most natural resource management related regulations in the LMB countries have only recently been enacted. Various new laws and dozens of ensuing regulations to implement these laws are now in place, which pose severe constraints on government officers, some of whom do not have the time to familiarise themselves to the new decrees or amendments.

Kern and Young (1998) note that "where massive changes have been adopted, they may be completely overwhelmed and continue to enforce the superseded provisions for a long time. Forest users (and communities) may be similarly unaware of, and equipped to deal with, changes".

In most LMB countries, sufficient laws and regulations are in place. The main constraint is the lack of political will and commitment to ensure their enforcement.

3.1.12 Customary land rights

Customary inheritance law exists in all four LMB countries, most notable in Laos. It entities women to rights on land. However, recently land registration is often put in the name of 'the head of the household (which are often men). Moreover, the ratification of the adjudication of permanent land rights requires confirmation of original land acquisition certificates. Usually, no formal certificates have been issued in case the land is inherited, by a woman according to the customary practices of her community. It is mostly a verbal agreement, known by kin and neighbours of the village. This creates a weak 'legal' position. The State Inheritance Law promotes equality in the division of land between brothers and sisters after the death of the parents. The implementation of this gender equality principle in practice, might mean a step backward in the advantaged position according to customary land rights of groups of women (and men) who have cared the most for their old parents. Gender aspects as division of labour, authority and representation of men in public life, less education of women, shyness and ignorance of women to understand the meaning of land use rights, are the main reasons

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for the male-dominated land recording.

3.1.13 Gender constraints related to forestry and watershed development

The following gender-related impacts constrain watershed and forestry development:

� Women's workload is increasing as a result of deforestation, cash crop promotion, depletion of firewood, male migration.

� Forestry sector is male-dominated. Male staff in line departments 17 Heads of households (males) are approached for meetings and training in projects by male staff. Extension is also male directed. Gender relations become more unequal because of gender gap in knowledge of new technologies.

� Women, but also men of poor households in local communities have no decision making power over land use and land allocation

� Women of ethnic minorities have less higher education which affects their self-confidence in taking up public roles in formal decision making watershed management boards

� Women face cultural constraints (shy, men cannot loose face, authority of the male, division of labour)

� The survival needs of women (and men) are not assessed before land-, water-, and forest projects starts: it is assumed that women will participate in the determined activities. These activities are mostly conceptualised from the male point of view. Usually there is no scope in the budget and planning to include small socioeconomic activities prioritised by the women.

� The motivation to integrate gender components in forest projects is more driven by efficiency and instrumental considerations (WID, Women in Development approach) than by real empowerment concerns. Often a political will to strengthen the relationship with the natural resources base and at the same time to enhance their status (GAD, Gender and Development approach) is lacking.

3.1.14 Participation constraints related to forestry and watershed development

The following participation-related impacts constrain watershed and forestry development:

� Because of the Indochina war many villages were destroyed and people displaced. Resettlement and inter-, and intra- provincial migration is increasing. New villages are formed with a heterogeneous population which has an impact on participation approaches.

� Mistrust of people (based on experience) that forest authorities, police, powerful leaders and other persons will reap the benefits from selling the trees and/or forest products grown by the community.

� In certain parts of Lao PDR and Cambodia people are reluctant to participate in heavy labour activities (digging irrigation canals) on a collective basis (voluntary labour) because of associations with forced labour from recent history. In other parts of these countries such constraints are not noticed. People are willing to do heavy labour for wages.

� Poverty prevents people growing trees as profits can only be obtained in a long term perspective. Agro-forestry projects might reduce this constraint.

� People will only be interested in participation of long-term improved resource management if they believe that any short-term sacrifice and changes to their current land management practices will be ultimately justified in terms of better lives for themselves and their children.

� Usual implementation is top-down land allocation and land adjudication. People are not consulted and do not participate in decision making regarding land use.

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� Lack of staff in line departments to implement a participatory process (district level mostly one person).

� Lack of training in Participatory Rapid Appraisal methodology and Gender Assessment Studies for line department staff and related organisations (Women's Union/NGO's).

� Change of fundamental attitude in staff of higher decision making and planning and local WS/F staff requires follow-up training and awareness raising

3.1.15 Hydropower and irrigation development

The 4,800 km long Mekong River has a vast hitherto largely untapped potential for hydropower development. So far 11 projects have been completed with a total installed capacity of 450 MW, which amounts to less than 5% of the hydropower potential (MRCS 1997). Whilst the majority of the dams have been built on tributaries of the Mekong, two dams are currently being constructed on the Mekong proper (Manwan, with a scheduled installed capacity of 1,500 MW and Daochaoshan; both are being built on the upper Mekong in Yunnan Province, PR. of China). With approximately 18% of the Mekong annual flow originating from China, these two dams - and further dam construction on the Lancang -could seriously affect the hydrological and ecological conditions of the lower Mekong.

In 1970 the Interim Mekong Committee presented its Indicative Plan. The plan drawn up by water resources planners estimated the hydropower potential of the lower basin alone to amount to 37,000 MW, of which 51 percent was in Lao PDR, 33 percent in Cambodia and the remainder in the other two countries. The plan called for a cascade of seven dams to be constructed on the Mekong River mainstream. Due to years of geopolitical instabilities, implementation of this plan was severely disrupted. Improved economic relations between the four countries could, however trigger a renewed interest in the implementation of this plan. The Asian Development Bank is currently funding a feasibility study for six large hydroelectric dams in the Se Kong-Se San River Basin which lies in southern Laos, north-eastern Cambodia and central highlands of Viet Nam.

In 1991 the Thai government announced its plans to construct 27 dams on the Khong, Chi and Mun rivers to store water diverted from the Mekong. In 1995, the government approved funding for a feasibility study of the Kok-Ing-Nan diversion project which intends to divert water from these three Mekong tributaries into the Chao Phraya River Basin to provide irrigation for Thailand's central plains and water for Bangkok municipality. Both projects have been shelved due to the recent economic recession that has hit Thailand's economy severely. Due to growing concern in Thailand over the environmental impact of large infrastructural works, EGAT is now pursuing hydropower development in neighbouring countries rather than furthering its scheduled large dam projects within Thailand's borders (Hirsch 1997).

The government of Laos and Cambodia recognise the strategic value of the hydropower sector as a way to earn foreign currency, by exporting electricity to neighbouring countries. In Laos the government has overhauled its legislation to allow private contractors to develop hydropower plants on a Build-Operate-Transfer basis. The Nam Theun 210 MW hydropower project, commissioned in 1998 is Laos's first BOT scheme. The private investors pursuing hydropower projects in Laos would still require international funding. International lending agencies such as the ADB and the World Bank, but also international operating investment banks, could act as guarantors of local participation in privately funded hydropower projects, on the condition that environmental and social assessments and associated project mitigating and monitoring actions comply with national (environmental and sectoral) policies, directives and standards of documentation.

Environmental management and monitoring plans for reservoirs generally call for strict protection of watersheds to prevent rapid siltation of reservoirs which could threaten the

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economic feasibility of the dam. Experiences throughout Asia, however have shown that storage reservoirs attract, however local communities to settle along the reservoir's shore in pursuit of their fishing activities. For their food self-sufficiency these communities than engage in upland farming in areas which are often classified as WSC I or II areas, with all the negative ramifications on soil erosion and increased sedimentation load build up, thereby reducing water flow and lower electricity generation.

3.2 Opportunities for Sector Development

3.2.1 Investment trends in forestry and relevant other sectors

Thailand and Viet Nam initiated large scale investments in restoration of forest cover. Together, they account for most of the LMB's 2.65 million ha of forest plantations. Forest plantations in the LMB are expanding at 120,000 ha annually, with Viet Nam and Thailand again accounting for most of this area. Laos and Cambodia have not yet initiated large scale forest plantations. Laos has an estimated 35,000 ha of forest plantations, expanding at an annual rate of 7,000 ha per annum. Cambodia has a relatively insignificant area of forest plantations.

Table 11- Forest plantations in the Lower Mekong River Basin

Sources: FAO Asia Pacific Forest Sector Outlook Study and various country forestry sector reports (1998)

The national reforestation schemes of the LMB countries focus on three end uses:(i) industrial wood supply: (ii) household wood supply; and (iii) environmental protection plantations.

In LMB countries where wood processing capacity exceeds, wood production capacity (e.g.

Thailand and Viet Nam) the state has subsidised forest plantation programmes to ensure adequate domestically produced raw material to supply forest products industries. In support of these national forest plantation initiatives, proponents emphasise the additional external benefits

provided, in the form of watershed management, carbon sequestration; erosion protection and other environmental benefit. Species planted in the region include a combination of indigenous and exotic species, with focus on three species groups-eucalyptus,' pine and acacia.

Table 12 - Most common tree species planted in commercial plantations (Viet Nam 1976-93)

Parameter Units Thailand Viet Nam Laos Cambodia LMB

Plantation Forest ha 1 000 000 1 600 000 35 000 < 10 000 2 650 000+

Annual Planting Rate

Ha/yr. 50 000 60 000 10 000 120 000+

Eucalypts Pines Acacias Other Total

47% 18% 7% 28% 100%

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Source: Viet Nam Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development MARD, Review of Forest Plantations

Both Thailand and Viet Nam have initiated joint ventures between government (who provide state land) and industrial enterprises (who provide capital and markets) for industrial forest plantations initiatives aimed at producing raw material for expanding pulp and paper and medium density fibre board industries.

In many parts of the LMB forest plantations have been established in small, scattered blocks, which are often poorly planned in terms of where the future market for their log output will be. This will result in low stumpage values and low returns on invested funds. Market proximity and access is particularly important for short rotation smaller diameter logs, which are utilised in lower wood paying capacity products (i.e. for pulping, pitprops, reconstituted panel boards, wood chips for export, construction poles and fuelwood). Small diameter logs from fast growing species cannot afford to be transported large distances and should only be planted where a strong local market is assured, or sufficient area can be planted to create a dedicated industrial outlet.

Improved market planning of plantation forests is required in order to determine whether the plantation should be aimed at producing larger diameter logs on long rotations; or small diameter pulpwood, on short cutting cycles. Efforts should be made to concentrate plantations on fewer sites, dedicated to specific market opportunities.

3.2.2 Market prospects for wood and non-wood forest products and services

Market prospects for wood and non-wood forest products are expected to remain strong, as the economies and populations of the LMB and the rest of South East Asia continue to grow. As discussed earlier, the LMB region consumes most of its forest production internally and only a relatively small portion of total production is exported from the region. There is a limited opportunity to take advantage of improved market access and price premiums for eco-labelled wood products; i.e. wood products from forests which are certified as sustainably managed. There are also opportunities for expanding markets for non wood forest products and forest services such as eco-tourism, carbon offsets, etc. These subjects are discussed in more detail below and in Annex B - Perspective Plan on Forestry.

3.2.3 Instruments for capturing environmental benefits of forests

i) Ecotourism

Eco-tourism is one of the fastest growing sectors of the tourism industry. Tourists eager to visit undisturbed natural areas to experience spectacular scenery and view wildlife are often prepared to pay high prices for modest accommodation. Therefore capital investment and infrastructure requirements are low and profits are high. It is estimates that US$ 25 billion per year flows from developed to less developed countries through eco-tourism.

There is good potential for development of eco-tourism in the LMB. Revenue generated could make LMB national parks financially self-supporting; local communities could share the benefits through provision of accommodation and guiding services; and living standards in rural areas could be raised.

Eco-tourism can also deter encroachment, logging and hunting. Since these activities threaten tourism earnings, those benefiting from eco-tourism would have an incentive to monitor and enforce regulations in areas frequented by tourists. Eco-tourists and villagers alike would become more aware of conservation issues and therefore be more likely to protect threatened parks and protected areas.

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Unlike extractive activities such as logging, eco-tourism focuses on extracting economic benefit from the forest without degrading them, by providing services to visitors interested in experiencing natural forest environments. Ecotourism provides employment, brings in foreign exchange and (properly developed) can be utilised as an educational toot for forest management (and preservation). Local community involvement in tourism is a means of providing extra income to forest dependent people living near forests with eco-tourism potential.

Extra income from eco-tourism reduces dependence on subsistence farming, allowing farmers to invest in more intensive cash-crop agriculture. The focus on cash crops reduces the area of land required and thus stems the opening of new land for cultivation.

Eco-tourism involving wildlife viewing or nature interpretation encourages stewardship of the natural resources as a means to earn income. As tourism brings the client to the product, local people do not have to relocate to obtain employment, as it is right there in their community. This, in effect, adds value as there are no costs in terms of transport to work place, rent or subsistence.

ii) Carbon Offset Trading

Carbon offsets are increasingly becoming a viable alternative to exploiting forests for their timber and non-timber products. The carbon offset market provides developing countries with additional financial resources from their tropical forests-money that can be earned without cutting trees. Costa Rica recently sold the carbon sequestered in 1.25 million hectares of its tropical rain forests, which it has dedicated as a permanent conservation area. Over the life of the project this conserved forest land will absorb 15.6 million tons of carbon equivalent from the atmosphere and sequester it in forest bio-mass – tree trunks, roots, branches, ets.

Sale of Certified Tradable Offsets [CTOs] , officially known as Certified Emission Reductions [CERs], could earn Costa Rica over $20 million annually – $300 million during the project's 20 year implementation period.

The offsets will be sold to companies in industrialised countries, whose greenhouse gas emissions exceed targets established at the Climate Change Summit Meeting in Kyoto (1997).The sale of the next century. This concept offers the opportunity to reduce the negative impacts of deforestation, while internalising a potion of portion of the cost of environment services provided these forests.

There is potential for replication of this initiative in the LMB. Based on the Costa Rican experience, conservation of 10% of the LMB's 22 million ha of forests, would generate annual revenues of $35 million to fund rehabilitation, protection, improvement and management of the region's forests.

iii) Forest Certification

The use of independent, credible, third party assessment and certification as a means of encouraging timber producers to meet established environment and social standards for forestry practices has been used successfully in many countries. Forestry agencies in Viet Nam, Laos and Cambodia are exploring forest certification as a means of providing incentives for improved forest management.

The strength of such programmes lies in the hands of forests product consumers, who use their buying power to support environmentally friendly products, thus helping to ensure the

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long-term survival of forests and the species and people that live and work in them. By demanding certified wood products, manufacturers, architects, designers, builders, woodworkers, furniture makers, and governmental agencies can make profound improvements in forest management, as can the consumers who purchase their products.

Certification can assist in reducing degradation by curtailing illegal wood cutting, normalising forest operations through the use of management plans which include protection measures and controls to limit the indiscriminate conversion of natural forests to plantations. Measures that improve forest management and forest derived benefits will reduce the risk of deforestation.

Certification is not meant to be end in itself, but an important instrument in forest policy for the implementation of sustainable forest management, i.e. forest management that contributes to sustainable development. As foresters in Lao and Viet Nam are learning, forest certification is more than simply labelling a product as eco-timber. It encompasses a complex process including :

� development of criteria for sustainable forest management;

� accreditation of national forest certification programmes;

� application of the criteria in forest certification assessments;

� providing a chain of custody tracking. separation of certified from non-certified wood products as they travel from forest, to mill, to retailer; and finally

� labelling of the products originating from sustainably managed forests.

The mandate for the forest certification movement lies with the forest Stewardship Council (FSC), which is an independent, non-profit, non-governmental organisation that was founded in 1993 as an international accrediting organisation for timber certification. Forest products bearing the FSC "green label" have to meet the organisation's standards of forest stewardship as defined in the "Principles and Criteria for Forest Management". To date the FSC has recognised the competence and accredited 5 - 10 national or regional certification bodies and is moving toward recognition of several others. To ensure consistency and quality of the certification assessments, FSC undertakes training of assessors and periodically checks the work undertaken by its accredited certification bodies. It also has a mechanism for settlement of disputes arising from certification.

iv) Transfer Payments from Lowland agricultural Land Users to Upland Forest Land Users

In some cases the use of resources by landowners conflicts with the interests of society at large. To ensure optimum forest land use on private land, subsidies, or the tax structure may have to be used to ensure that land rights holders adopt an alternative land use, that is in society's best interest.

In the case of forested watersheds, clearing of these forest by upland farmers seeking a higher economic use of the land, may create negative externalities–flash floods, siltation of dams; greenhouse effect–to those living down stream and elsewhere. If the property rights of the local residents are legally recognised, then society may have to pay them to maintain trees (or plant trees, if the watershed is already deforested) on these lands. The magnitude of this payment would be calculated on the basis of the difference in economic returns between the private land use–the one the upland landowner prefers–and the one preferred

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by society at large; i.e. growing trees.

Ideally, farmers or operators of hydro-electric schemes in the lowlands, who benefit from healthy, well-stocked forests in upland watersheds, would pay a tax on their agricultural production or electric energy production. The funds collected from this tax would be redistributed to upland communities (or individuals) for maintaining forests on their lands.

If, on the other hand it is society in general that has the right to the trees on upland areas (state ownership of forest) instead of local residents, then appropriate taxes (or fines) can be imposed on the upland residents for cutting trees, which will lead to the same allocation outcome. Although from an allocation point of view this theory is sound, it is only valid when transaction costs are not too high. If the cost of negotiation between the parties is too high (which often they are), then there is a role for the government to pay a subsidy or collect the taxation is may not be effective in promoting resource conservation by small upland farmers in developing countries, as they often live outside the taxable economy.

The following case summarises the concept of transfer payments:

� Property rights of local residents (or communities) are recognised;

� The owners decide to grow cash crops (the most profitable alternative from their point of view);

� If society wants them to grow trees/forest instead (because of the external effects); the

� Society will have to compensate the local residents to encourage them to grow the needed trees

Both subsidies and taxes/fines can be used to correct misallocation of resources. The choice of instrument to be used depends on whose rights are being accorded recognition. The following text box illustrates how European countries employ taxes and subsidies to ensure maintenance of forests on forest land and how they encourage expansion of forests.

3.2.4 Global and community awareness and international law

International Non-Governmental Organisations work are increasingly drawing the attention on negative impacts of commercial exploitation on environment and the local population. The NGO, Global Witness, in Cambodia and other organisations are monitoring illegal logging and lobby with IMF, World Bank, bi-, and multilateral donors, international government level to demand better control over logging concessionaires.

In Europe a Combination of Taxes and Subsidies ensure that Forest Land Remains Forested

In many European countries, land taxes and subsidies are used to ensure that private forest lands are maintained in forest cover and that there is an incentive to expand forests. For example, in Finland, annual taxes on agricultural land are far higher than off forest land. Furthermore when a forest is felled, the landowner must reforest within a specified period, or face a large, area-based penalty for leaving the land fallow, or converting it to agriculture.

If, on the other hand an agricultural landowner plants trees on his land, he receives government subsidy payments to cover site preparation and planting costs. The incentive payments are funded by taxes (penalties) paid by forestland owners who convert their land to agriculture.

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Increasingly, whether conflicts involve outside forces or not, parties to a dispute over national land and resources are turning to the international community for assistance in resolving such disputes (Iorns and Hollick 1998). Iorns and Hollick note that international laws must be followed to create equal and lasting solutions to land disputes and resources. It is their advice to assess what may be relevant in a certain country. Areas of international law are developing rapidly, in many cases they are still not adequate to meet the needs of the people or to prevent destruction of the environment. Identification of areas where international law and methods of dispute resolution need further development are central debates in particular in the field of human rights.

The most significant step that national governments could take toward resolution of conflicts over land and resources in their countries is to acknowledge that international law recognises indigenous rights in land and resources; then they can work toward implementing this international law in their domestic legal systems (Hollick and Iorns 1998). In this regard the Draft Declaration on the rights of Indigenous People (UN doc. 1994), and the ILO Convention concerning Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in independent countries can be mentioned. In the ASEAN countries the Agreement on the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (Kuala Lumpur 1985), the Manila Declaration on the ASEAN Environment (1981), the so-called Jakarta Consensus on ASEAN Tropical Forestry (1981), and the International Tropical Timber Organisation (ITTO) (1990) are also relevant.

3.2.5 Participation and Forest Protection Committees

Since the Chipko movement in India in the sixties when women protected oak trees with their bodies to prevent logging, the awareness that participation of the local people is an absolute necessity has significantly increased. In India successful 'Strategies for People's Participation' in (social) forestry projects have been developed, including the leasing-out of forest land (Patta-rights) to individual families and communities.

So-called Forest Protection Committees (FPC groups) are functioning in West-Bengal (India) and received official recognition by the Government of West-Bengal in 1989. The FPCs seek to revive a tradition of village forest protection with the intention of regenerating the natural wealth (Viegas 45 and Menon 1993). The managerial aspects are also crucial as it is an attempt to consciously move away from the general tendency of the government to gain complete monopoly over natural resources and the exclusion of local participation in its management. A third important feature is the conscious effort to involve women in the formal structure and process of decision-making in the FPC's. In tangible terms, the members of the FPC's have been officially granted full usufructuary rights in the protected forest areas as well as a 25 per cent share in the net sale of timber at the time of felling. A major contribution of the FPC's has been the generation of employment of the local people. The following activities having a potential for the generation of employment have been undertaken by the Forest Department in villages of West-Bengal: thinning; multiple shoot cutting; farm forestry; silvi-pastoral farming; cashew plantation; digging wells for drinking water; constructing earthen dams; clear felling; village road construction. FPC's have been very successful in the regeneration of the forest, and the improvement of quality of life of the people.

3.2.6 Donor interest

A large number of international and bilateral donors support activities in the forestry and watershed management sectors of the Lower Mekong Basin. According to the country reports submitted by the four riparian experts, there are in excess of 80 forestry and watershed management projects, as shown in the following table.

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Table 13 - Principal projects on forestry and watershed management in LMB

Source: riparian reports augmented by other sources.

Notes:

Data does not include a large number of forest and watershed activities being undertaken by NGOs; nor projects being implemented outside of National Forestry and Watershed line agencies

*Thailand data incomplete.

A review of the riparian reports shows that the main focus of internationally funded projects in the four LMB countries is introduction of new, improved approaches to forest management and conservation, including the following types of activities:

� Review and consolidation of forest and watershed policy; � Formulation and implementation of an appropriate institutional and regulatory

framework for implementation of forestry and watershed management policy; � Implementation of national programs in:

� Forest inventory and monitoring of forest resources; � Sustainable management of forest resources; � Monitoring and enforcement of forestry operations � Community Forest-based Rural Development

� Human Resources Development Program - In order to successfully implement these programs, most projects include strong human resources development and technical assistance components.

Field work on these projects is generally concentrated on three areas:

� biodiversity conservation areas; � commercial production forests; � areas of critical environmental degradation; and � upland communities (agro-forestry)

Most projects contain measures to ensure that the activities supported during the project period can be sustained during the post-project period. Measures to ensure sustainability include:

� technical assistance to build capacity in forest and watershed management agencies; � establishment of forest management and conservation trust funds (or combined funds); � development and implementation of guidelines and strategies for forest, watershed

and protected area management � forest valuation and design and implementation of appropriate funding mechanisms

Cambodia Lao PDR Thailand* Viet Nam

Number of projects 26 11 2 40

Total amount of TA funding

$70 million (data incomplete)

$11 million (data incomplete)

Not Available Data incomplete

$218 million

Sub-basins covered 6 (nationwide) 4 Not Available

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14 Exclusive of the Chairmanship of Chairman en Vice Chairmen Composed of high ranking Government officials

15 Cambodia has 20+ active forest concessions, covering 4 million ha

16 Cambodia, for example has recently reduced the cutting cycle from 35 years to 15 years.

17 The total percentage of female office staff in the Department of Forest in Cambodia is 9.6%. There are 680 man and 72 women. All the chiefs are men with the exception of the Chief of Administration and Personnel (Report Study on the role of Women in Water Resources Development in the Lower Mekong Basin (1997).


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4 JUSTIFICATION FOR STRATEGY

4.1 Importance

The Mekong river system is one of the very few large river systems which have remained virtually unexploited. The Mekong region is endowed by a rich natural resource base, which is of vital importance to all its riparian states. The potential for natural resource management and development (agriculture, fisheries, forestry, etc.) are immense. The economies of the four Lower Mekong Basin states will, for some time to come remain focused on the primary natural resource management sectors. Conditional to the furtherance of these sectors is the proper management of the land and water resources. The riparian countries have recognised that their economic progress is inexorably linked to the development of the Mekong in an environmental sound and sustainable way.

Whilst the initial focus of the predecessor of the Mekong River Commission has mainly been on water resources management, hydropower development and navigation, MRC's focus has expanded to include sustainable management of the basin's natural resources.

In this spirit, the four LMB countries signed an agreement on April 6, 1995 to co-operate in developing the basin's land, water and related resources. In 1988, the MRCS engaged in an extensive strategic planning exercise involving a large number of stakeholders. This activity has led to the adoption of a vision and mission statement and a series of short and medium term goals. MRC's vision statement calls for an economic prosperous, socially just and environmentally sound Mekong basin. The vision statement, as well as MRC Key Objectives, will however be comprised if unsustainable and exploitative forest use and ill-considered land conversion activities continue in the upper watersheds.

4.1.1 Environmental importance of LMB forests

The forests of the LMB have a special role in the conservation of biodiversity. They also have a positive influence on local, regional and global climates. They moderate air temperatures and maintain atmospheric humidity levels. Forests absorb atmospheric carbon and replenish oxygen. The conservation of LMB forest resources in watersheds that supply water for irrigation, human consumption and sanitation is an important component of the basin's water supply strategy. When watersheds have balanced land use, their forests absorb excessive rainfall that is gradually released later. Forests regulate stream flows by intercepting rainfall, absorbing the water into the underlying soil, and gradually releasing it into the streams and rivers of its watershed. This minimises both downstream flooding and drought conditions. Tree cover conserves moisture in the soil by providing shade that reduces the evaporative loss from radiant energy exchange with the atmosphere. Tree roots enhance soil porosity, reduce compaction, and facilitate infiltration. Trees act as windbreaks, reducing the force of winds which dry and erode the soil.

The LMB is widely regarded as one of the richest regions in terms of its biodiversity However, at the same time it is one of the most understudied regions in terms of zoological and botanical research. Although all LMB countries have adopted a stated policy on conservation of wild habitats and species, and in pursuit of this have, gazetted large swatches of land as national parks and wildlife sanctuaries, a large number of these sites are currently unmanaged. In addition, a number of newly protected areas partly overlap with production forests and hydropower schemes.

4.1.2 Socio-economic importance of LMB forests

It is estimated that about 17%, or 10 million of the LMB's 60 million people live in or near the

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LMB's forests. They depend on the forests for many important products and environmental services. A large portion of this population are native or indigenous peoples who rely on the forests for their way of life. Forests not only meet their economic needs for food and shelter but also form an integral part of their culture and spiritual traditions.

Forest products are an important part of the formal and informal economy of the four riparian countries of the LMB. A wide range of industrial wood products – sawn timber, wood panels, posts, poles, pulp, and paper – are used in the daily lives of the basin's residents. The annual volume of fuelwood produced and consumed in the four countries of the Mekong

Basin is about. 100 million m3. Wood is by far the most important source of energy for most

of the LMB's residents. Industrial wood production is about 10 million m3. Since much of this wood production is unofficial wood harvests consumed outside the cash economy or illegal production, it is not recorded in national economic statistics. However, it is estimated that the annual value of wood produced by the four countries is US$ 3 billion, or about 2.5 % of the LMB's $120 billion gross domestic product. Inter-country trade in industrial wood is

estimated at 2 to 3 million m3 with an approximate value of $250 million.

In addition to wood products, the LMB's forests produce a wide range of non-wood forest products – so called "minor" forest products, or which in many cases are "major" forest products for the local people. These include fibres, resins, latex, fruits, and traditional medicines. Forests are also important sources of foodstuffs, particularly in times of drought and famine when conventional agricultural crops fail to provide sufficient food. Indigenous people in particular, rely on forests for up to 25 per cent of their basic food requirements. Most of these "minor" or non timber forest products are produced, traded, and consumed outside the cash economy and therefore are not quoted in the national economic statistics.

The region's forests are potentially a rich source of genetic material plant-improvement breeding. Likewise forests are important sources of new pharmaceuticals used to fight diseases such as cancer and AIDS. Many of these products have potential to become important commodities in world trade as a pharmaceuticals. However, present knowledge about the LMB's forest plants is limited, and needs improvement by ongoing research.

Deforestation and the ensuing environmental degradation in the upper catchment areas are already leading to widespread socioeconomic problems in the LMB states, which would necessitate immediate response from the appropriate agencies in the four riparian countries. Lack of qualitative data on the socioeconomic impacts of deforestation, however, is impeding decision making. The prevailing deforestation has (albeit unqualified) impacts on the downstream areas due to increasing water runoff, soil erosion, siltation in rivers and wetlands, increasing rates of occurrence and severity of floods and droughts, loss of biodiversity, fisheries depletion, and damage to agricultural and irrigation systems. These effects are felt throughout the downstream areas and are often transboundary in nature.

According to the GTZ-funded Forest Cover Monitoring Project, coordinated by MRC, the LMB uplands comprise some 11 million ha of degraded (wood and shrubland) land (FCMP 1999). This constitutes 18% of the, LMB total surface area. Over 70% of these degraded wood and shrubland (amounting to 8.1 million ha) is located in Laos, which has the highest percentage of erosion-prone areas in the LMB. At the same time watersheds in Laos contribute the largest flow volumes in relation to the total average MRB flow (43 % or

5,270m3 s-1). Increasing exploitation of these wood shrublands could easily lead to the uplands being stripped entirely of their protective cover with all their ensuing impacts on severe soil erosion and downstream ramifications for agriculture, navigation and fisheries.

The SDC-funded Watershed Classification Project (WSC), also coordinated by the MRC has revealed that in the LMB, 30% of the catchment due to their biophysical conditions, should

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either have been classified as hydrological protection forests (so called Class I areas), or protection and/or commercial forests (Class II areas) (WSC, 1999). Class I areas include the headwaters of rivers, which are usually at high elevations, have very steep slopes and should remain under permanent forest cover. Class II areas apply to areas that usually are found at high elevations with steep to very steep slopes, having land forms which require sod and water conservation restrictions (so called Class II areas). From a national perspective, Laos has by far the highest percentage (55 %) of Class I + Class II areas within their part of the LMB, followed by Thailand (14%), Viet Nam (13%) and Cambodia (4%).

The dwindling forests are faced with the unsatiable demands of a steadily growing number of customers for its products from growth centres outside the LMB (Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi Kunming, etc.).

The FCMP and WSC statistics illustrate the immense pressure on the LMB forests, and explain why at present most of remaining forests are in a sub-optimal condition. There were obvious reasons for this; to cater for the needs of a growing population, forests have been overexploited by public forest administrations in Thailand and Viet Nam, subject of illegal logging operations, and harvested by the local population to meet basic needs and to generate revenue. Open access to forest areas has led to wanton over-exploitation; without incentives for reforestation.

4.2 Rationale for MRCS and NMCs

The MRC is realising that a number of acute watershed and forestry issues now require prompt actions by member states. Given its responsibilities for basin-wide natural resource management, however the four riparian countries, as well as donor agencies expect, the Secretariat to come forward with a long-term programme on watershed and forestry management. Whereas during the early years of the Commission's operations policies, strategies, action plans and programmes have been developed (or are in process of development) by the MRCS covering hydropower generation, fisheries, navigation, agriculture and irrigation, no coherent strategy and programme has so far been developed for the watershed management/forestry sector.

It is recognised by the member states of the MRC that future activities of this institution must aim at a balance between the economic, social and environmental dimensions of development. A watershed management/forestry strategy is needed to focus the operation of the MRCS to help bring remote rural communities out of poverty and to ensure the long-term sustainable management of forest resources. The MRCS is well placed to play a key role as sub-regional co-operation is a prerequisite to effective watershed management.

As shown in section 2.2, among the most critical watersheds which require immediate interventions from the riparian states, a large number are shared by two riparian countries. These include: Se San and Se Prok (sub-basin area covering Cambodia and Viet Nam), Se Kong (Cambodia, Viet Nam and Laos) and Nam Num (Laos and Viet Nam). To arrest further environmental deterioration concerted efforts are required by all riparian states.

A watershed management and forestry strategy and action plan would be in line with the basic principles as laid down in the Agreement on the Co-operation for the Sustainable Development of the Mekong River Basin, signed by the four Lower Mekong Basin countries on 5 April 1995. The Agreement unequivocally states that the basin's natural resources are natural assets of immense value to all the riparian countries for the economic and social well-being and living .Standard of their people.

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The Agreement further calls for the promotion of the sustainable development, utilisation, conservation and management of the Mekong River Basin and related resources for the social and economic development and the well-being of all riparian States, consistent with the needs to protect, preserve, enhance and manage the environmental and aquatic conditions and maintenance of the ecological balance exceptional to this river basin. In Addition, the Agreement calls for parties to co-operate In all fields of sustainable development, utilisation, management and conservation of the water and related resources of the Mekong River Basin (Article 1).

A watershed management and forestry strategy and action plan is in line the Commission's

Strategic Plan (1999-2003), adopted by the Fifth Council Meeting, 27-28 October 1998, which lists specified goals, key results areas and their objectives. The Strategy addresses several Strategic Plan overall goals especially Goal 5: Improve the capacity of the MRC to implement its Mission, to play the leading role in coordinating the Basin's water related activities, and to meet stakeholder expectations.

Whilst specific policies and developments affecting forestry and watershed management activities in the tributary systems are initiated and implemented according to the respective national priorities, there is an implicit justification for basinwide concerns, planning and management in this sector. With the MRCS' recent reorganisation and approval of its overall vision, mission and goals and Strategic Plan, the updating of its watershed management/ forestry sector is opportune.

There is a need for an agreed approach for selecting sector projects and a basic action plan to achieve the goals and objectives of the Strategy (set out in chapter 5) to the mutual benefit of the basin users and the riparian nation states.

There is a need for a revised sector mandate due to changing issues affecting watersheds and recent reorientation of land use legislation, forestry policy and objectives in all four riparian countries. The MRC has made laudable progress with the implementation of a number of studies on the status of watersheds and forests in the LMB. These projects funded by SDC and GTZ respectively have considerably strengthened the technical skills and professional ties among technicians in the four riparian countries. It is now considered high time for the MRC to move away from further studies and to facilitate community based forest and watershed rehabilitation interventions as one of the components of its Watershed Management and Forestry Strategy and Action Plan. This would, however necessitate a change in attitude from the Commission officers as thus far projects executed have generally not focused on the social dimension and public consultations.

Whereas the Commission's forestry-related activities have so far primarily focused on establishment of databases with a view to prepare forest cover and watershed maps, a strong case can be made for MRCS to advocate an overall watershed management/forestry programme which intends to address a wider range of activities. What ultimately is required is a programme approach which will include activities related to sub-regional co-operation in institution building (through informal and formal training), pilot projects focusing on long-term community-based forest management systems; community awareness programmes on impacts on shifting cultivation; support for legal reform and policy formulation; and support for updating the GIS and databases on forest cover and watershed classes.

The consequences of excessive forest loss and degradation, in terms of biodiversity and climate change are generally believed to be significant. The Commission, in pursuit of the 1995 Agreement and the October 1998 Strategic Plan, now considers environmental issues and sustainability as mainstream issues. It thereby subscribes to the objective of bringing

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regional, national and local aspirations for community-based forest management more into the foreground of its sponsored activities than presently is the case. While a number of recent projects which the Commission has initiated address the issue of mainstreaming environmental and social-economic goals, in the case of its forest-related activities, these goals remain largely unfulfilled.

4.3 Linkage with BDP and WUP

The Forestry and Watershed Management Strategy and Action Plan is also required as important guiding tools for the formulation of the Basin Development Plan (BDP) and Water Utilisation Plan (WUP).

BDP lies at the heart of the MRC operational mandate. As stipulated by the 1995 Agreement, BDP will be a general planning tool to be used by the Joint Committee to identify, categorise and prioritise projects in the Basin. BDP detailed planning phase has just been completed. The final phase will consider eight sectors (one of which is watershed management) and four planning themes (which include environment, socio-economics and public participation). The current draft

Watershed Management and Forestry Strategy and Action Plan Study, once approved by the Joint Committee during its forthcoming meeting in mid 2000 can be fully incorporated in BDP final phase, which will be developed during 2000.

The Design Phase for the WUP has also just been completed under financial assistance from the Global Environmental Facility (GEF). WUP is conceived as a long-term umbrella programme for which initially funding will be required covering a five years period. WUP aims to develop, maintain and implement the basic rules for water utilisation. It will seek to strengthen both the regional and national institutional capacity to undertake basin management functions (including forestry and watershed management). The Strategy Study will be completed early in the WUP implementation period and therefore its recommendations could be incorporated in the WUP.

5 STRATEGIC GOAL AND OBJECTIVES

5.1 Development Context

A number of new developments and issues, which have arisen in the forestry and watershed management regionally, and in the Commission's general approach to its objectives, demand the attention for future sector activities:

� global biodiversity importance of the LMB forest resources;

� cross-cutting issues, such as poverty alleviation, participation, and governance are prominent in Commission approaches to development;

� the potential impacts of the carbon stored in natural forest systems on global climate changes is a subject of increased interest to all involved in the sector;

� certification of forest products, as having come from sustainably managed forests, is gaining acceptance as a marketing device in some developed country markets but,

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nonetheless, remains a matter of controversy -as does the issue of forest sustainability itself.

5.2 Goal and Objectives

A Watershed Management and Forestry Strategy is needed to focus the operation of the MRCS to ensure the long-term sustainable management of watershed and forest resources and to enhance economic opportunities for remote rural communities. The MRCS is well placed to play a key role in sub-regional co-operation. This co-operative approach is a prerequisite to effective forestry and watershed management. Many of the most critical watersheds of the LMB are shared by two countries. Further environmental degradation of these watersheds will have significant repercussions in other downstream areas of the Mekong Basin. A strategy is also needed to avoid that forest and watershed projects are submitted for funding to MRCS, which are based primarily on national political agendas.

The Strategy's Goal is:

� to promote co-operation in sustainable development, utilization, conservation and management of Mekong River Basin's forests and watersheds for the protection of local people's life, agricultural production and infrastructure from environmental degradation of upper Lower Mekong Basin watersheds.

The Objectives are:

� to promote and to support methods for the transfer of effective land and forest management practices to the upland communities of the LMB; and

� to strengthen LMB institutions engaged in forest management in forestry and water management in forest rehabilitation and protection.

To achieve this goal and objective require a key focus on integrating (biophysical) conservation and (socioeconomic) development in order to align the welfare and development strategies of upland communities with national and regional forest rehabilitation and conservation goals. This can be achieved by developing innovative methods for protecting and rehabilitating LMB's critical watersheds and forest resources.

For the watershed management part of the strategy, therefore a three-pronged approach is proposed to arrest further environmental degradation:

� immediate support will be required to build management capacity for watershed rehabilitation;

� in addition, prevailing poverty and food security issues need to be addressed, especially where they compel local communities to employ unsustainable land-use-practices. Support will be needed to improve forestry extension services and to aid the development of sustainable livelihood options for local communities

� increased public education to enhance awareness and influence behaviour towards sustainable watershed resource use.

6 PROGRAMME COMPONENTS AND FOCAL AREAS

In chapter 3, a number of constraints and opportunities to the development of the forestry

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and watershed management sectors of the LMB countries were discussed. In general, solutions to these issues and constraints should focus on the following four Focal Areas (or Programme Components):

i. Security of Land Tenure and Resource Rights

ii. Sustainable Forest Management

iii. Ecosystem Improvement and Biodiversity Conservation

iv. Human Resources and Institution Capacity Building

6.1 Focal Area No 1: Security of Land Tenure and Resource Right

The main problem in all the four riparian countries is that upland communities no longer have access and control over their natural resources, as they do not have officially acknowledged and endorsed land and forest use, or usufruct, or property rights documents.

The Focal Area Objective is:

� to promote, co-ordinate and initiate dialogue between LMB countries on the importance of adjudication policies and legislation regarding the issuing titles of land titles and/or usufruct rights on an individual or community basis for people, living in the forest in the four riparian countries.

MRC component activities under the Strategy should include:

i. the issuing of land titles on an individual or community basis for people living in the forest in the four riparian countries;

ii. acknowledgement of customary land rights of ethnic communities;

iii. integration of land rights adjudication procedures and in the formal State legislation; and

iv. provide support for Organisation of Forest Management Committees (FMCs) in forest dependent communities as a pre-condition. Organisational structures, constitutions and bylaws of FMCs in the four riparian countries could be topic of study by the MRC.

The main vision behind the above outlined strategy is to strengthen communities, and in particular women, to support themselves in improving their local watershed/forest area, while simultaneously improving their socioeconomic condition.

Co-operation between the Governments on this pressing matter is urgently required. Only when forest communities have the security of land and forest use rights will they manage their natural resource in watershed and forest areas in a sustainable way. This will be in particular very important for women as they, as a result of the gender division of labour, are more affected by deforestation and watershed degradation issues than men.

A detailed scenario is presented in the Perspective Paper on Gender and Participation (Annex D). The approach behind the activities seeks to combine participatory data collection with awareness raising, institution building, human resource development, and attitudinal

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change of the staff of the implementing agencies.

See Appendix 3 for Project Identification Notes (PINS) for proposed projects on these topics.

6.2 Focal Area No 2: Sustainable Forest Management

Five inter-related issues confront forestry sector development in the Lower Mekong Basin:

� Logging and forest clearing for agriculture in the LMB have expanded rapidly, driven by increasing population and agriculture development. Forest cover has now declined to a point where most countries of the region are focused on conserving forests, rather than expanding exploitation. There is wide-spread concern over the adverse environmental impacts attributed to deforestation–soil erosion, siltation, water shortages in the dry season; destructive floods in the wet season; loss of biodiversity, global warming, etc.

� Although there are priorities and plans for the forestry sectors of LMB countries, there are often no clear line of responsibilities at Ministry, Department and Provincial levels. A well defined institutional framework with clearly defined duties and responsibilities, for all staff is a prerequisite for improving forestry practice in the LMB.

� Forest lands in the LMB generally belong to the states. Logging operations have been practised under varying forms of forest concessions. The system has not functioned successfully for a variety of reasons. Accessible forests have been universally depleted through a combination of "over cutting" of valuable timber trees, followed by encroachment into logged over forest areas, which are inadequately protected. Control over forestry operations is universally weak and forest degradation is pronounced.

� Cambodia and Laos have extensive forest resources and have become key wood supply areas for their larger, more densely populated neighbours–Thailand and Vietnam. Unless effective mechanisms for curtailing illegal logging and wood trade can be developed and enforced, sustainable forest management in the region will be difficult, if not impossible to achieve and forest degradation in Lao PDR and Cambodia will continue.

� Forested areas of the LMB are the traditional habitat of indigenous or tribal forest dwellers, whose use rights have been gradually eroded by land use changes, natural resources exploitation and development projects. In many areas, there have been several decades of human and ecological degradation. There is general international consensus of the need to delimit, demarcate and establish secure forest and land tenure rights for forest communities, both to 6 ensure the cultural survival of indigenous people, and to improve environmental protection.


� to seek solutions to the five issues identified above by promoting, coordinating and initiating dialogue between LMB countries aimed at developing alternative, effective approaches to forest management.

These approaches would be focused on five broad areas of intervention, namely:

1. Forest Protection - e.g. improved monitoring and enforcement to regulate and control illegal logging and trans-border wood trade;

2. Forest Resource Information Management (follow on from Forest Cover Monitoring Project);

3. Market Based Instruments to Improve the Returns to Forestry - e.g. Auction sales of timber harvesting rights, Forest certification, Carbon offset trading, Transfer Payments,

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etc. 4. Community Involvement in Forest Protection and Forest Resource Expansion and 5. Forestry Education and Training (the last two bullets points follow on from sustainable

Resources Management Project).


6.3 Focal Area No 3: Ecosystem Improvement and Biodiversity Conservation

All LMB countries have had a long history of establishing and managing areas for the purpose of protecting precious ecosystems and species, although different management prescriptions are applied to various types of protected areas in the various countries.

While all four countries have defined protected area policies, enforcement is weak and encroachment, poaching of wild animals and unsustainable extraction of non timber forest products is continuing unabated. Local communities view the natural resources within protected areas as open access resources. The ongoing loss of forest cover and conversion of natural habitats in agricultural land has severe long term impacts on the biodiversity in the region from the effects of insularisation, caused by the process of habitat fragmentation and isolation.

Many of the protected areas are found along national borders, and some have contiguous protected areas on the opposite side of the border, which would require transborder co-operative management. Another key management issue is that the areas protected by each country do not fully represent the range of the natural ecosystems and habitats of the LMB as a whole. Integration of the design and management of the national protected area systems in the LMB countries should be a priority for sub-regional co-operation.


� to promote, co-ordinate and initiate dialogue between LMB countries on crossborder co-operation in the field of protected area management.

For all LMB countries the level of land designated for conservation purposes needs to be considered in the light of the long-term financial viability and sustainability of protected area management.

Projects areas of interventions include:

1. detailed protected area review to assess whether the current network fully encompass the wide range of ecosystems.

2. degazettement of less valuable designated areas. A review of protected areas which could be sacrificed for other land use purpose to free limited funds for high priority conservation areas, as well as paying for management interventions in the bufferzones (to improve the socio-economic conditions of the local communities living in areas adjacent to the parks and sanctuaries).

3. review to identify ecological corridors linking protected areas with the forest e-states/logging concession areas.

4. planning exercises to consider cross-border protection issues and requirements for

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joint management of transborder reserves (such as Virachey National Park in Cambodia on the border with Laos; Xe Piane National Biodiversity Conservation Area in Laos on the border with Cambodia; and Nakai Nam Theun National Biodiversity Conservation Area in Laos on the border with Viet Nam, etc.).


6.4 Focal Area No 4: Human Resources and Institutional Capacity Building

Given the limited numbers, qualifications and experience of MRCS and NMCs staff, (see section 8.2), there is a need to build capacity within MRC and the National Mekong Committees in the fields of expertise which support the key focal areas discussed in sections 6.1 to 6.3 above. This includes: (i) sustainable forestry and watershed management; (ii) socioeconomic monitoring; and (iii) analysis; and participation and gender sensitive planning.

Improved governance could be achieved through institutional capacity building and human resources development, which is deemed essential to the effective implementation of the Strategy and Action Plan. Capacity building is also needed in line agencies to develop an effective custodianship of the LMB's forest and watershed resources.


� to promote and facilitate the building of technical capacity in the fields of forestry and watershed and management; socioeconomic monitoring and analysis; and participatory, gender-sensitive planning in the MRC, NMCs and its network of national collaboration agencies in the field of forestry and watershed management

The following areas of interventions are envisioned:

1. Develop MRC capacity in Monitoring and Assessment of Forest and Watershed characteristics

In Annexes A and B and section 3.1.2. the need for strengthening of capacity of forestry and watershed management is highlighted. In particular there is a need to strengthen capacity in IM monitoring and assessing of forest and watershed characteristics, e.g. relationships between vegetative cover, edaphic conditions (soil types) and erosion, sediment load, water discharge rates in watersheds. The relationship between various factors effecting water quality and quantity need to be established in order to design appropriate and effective interventions.

2. Develop MRC capacity in socioeconomic monitoring and analysis

LMB countries have made considerable progress toward reducing poverty. Information flows from development of a socioeconomic monitoring system can facilitate interventions on poverty reduction. However, greater integration between MRCS, NMC's and line agencies is required to ensure that accurate and timely field data is collected, analysed and used to plan remedial actions.

MRCS will play a central role in such undertakings and will have responsibility for overseeing data analysis and interpretation and for organising the training of field staff. This will necessitate the strengthening of the MRCS through the recruitment of a full-time socio-

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economist.

The monitoring of socioeconomic change in the LMB will require the development of activities in both the MRC and the four NMCs. In the absence of existing capability in this field, a system will need to be developed following the process described below and in Table 14.

� establish links with NMCs and government line agencies and develop capability to collect, collate and analyse socioeconomic statistical information;

� design and implementation baseline studies/surveys to assess the nature and magnitude of change

� provide hardware (computers) and appropriate data analysis programmes; � train MRCS and NMC staff in data entry and statistical analysis programmes; � develop capability in MRCS and NMCs to interpret results of socio economic surveys.

Table 14 illustrates actions to be taken to develop a socio economic monitoring and evaluation system:

Table 14 - Development of a MRC socio-economic monitoring and evaluation system

3. Strengthen MRC capacity in analysis of participation and gender issues

Annex D – Perspective plan on participation and gender - includes a number activities designed to support the process of building MRC capacity to screen forestry and watershed management projects to ensure that they engender the concepts of participatory planning and implementation, as well as consideration of gender issues. These include:

� Checklists of significant (gender) research topics and priority areas for gender studies � Checklists to assess the feasibility and viability of projects from the institutional level � Checklists to assess the feasibility and viability of projects from the community level


7 CRITERIA FOR MRC FORESTRY AND WATERSHED MANAGEMENT INTERVENTIONS

Activity Means Actions Necessary

Develop Field-Based Data Collection System

MRCS/NMCs/ National Line Agencies

NMC Socio-economist (See below)

Establish links and agreements between line agencies and NMCs

Train local line agency personnel to collect and tabulate data.

Design Socio-Economic Surveys

MRCS Formal training in socio-economic survey design at NMC level.

Provide Computer Facilities MRCS Secure funding for additional computers and appropriate software in MRC and NMCs.

Data Interpretation and Analysis

MRCS Provide training for socio-economist to be located in MRCS. This person will then be responsible for training NMC personnel.

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Forestry and watershed management projects to be pursued by MRC should be in line with MRC's mandate and strategy, which is to "promote and co-ordinate sustainable management of resources for the mutual benefit of people in the LMB" To achieve this, the criteria for prioritising projects and activities in the forestry/watershed management sector should be based on the following broad principles:

� activities should reinforce the MRC's mandate and strategic direction � activities should have significance and mutual benefit to LMB countries � activities which stimulate regional (trans-boundary) co-operation � activities should, where feasible incorporate cross-cutting themes–environment, people

centred development, poverty alleviation, livelihood generation, gender issues, etc. � activities should strengthen capacity of regional institutions to resolve forestry and

watershed management problems, as elaborated in the Mekong River Basin Diagnostic Study

� activities should identify, document and disseminate "best practices" in watershed management through links to global, regional and national watershed management initiatives.

7.1 Thematic Criteria

In chapter 3, a number of issues and constraints to the development of the forestry/watershed management sector of the LMB countries were discussed. Based on these issues, four main Focal Areas have been identified (sections 6.1-6.4). In general, solutions to these issues and constraints should focus on:

� land tenure and forest resource security � soil and water conservation � forest protection and afforestation � participation by upland farmers � ecosystem improvement and biodiversity conservation � public and private participation in programme development, priority setting and

implementation � cross-border co-operation � institutional strengthening

7.2 Criteria for Selection of Individual Critical Watersheds

The use of a narrow range of evaluation criteria, and application of these criteria to watersheds extending over large areas can lead to inappropriate interventions. It is therefore recommended that criteria for selection of watershed management interventions be sufficiently broad in scope to ensure that a wide range of biophysical and socioeconomic factors, which impact on watershed management, are evaluated. The criteria should be used to evaluate relatively well-defined, individual watershed units (sub-basins) in order to capture their distinct features and characteristics.

The following criteria for selection of watershed areas may apply:

� watersheds having more than 50% of Class I and II area void of forest18

� watersheds having more than 50% of the Class I and II area void of forest, which have seen increase in population over the last five years by more than 10%

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� watersheds with more than 50% comprised of Class I and II areas which discharge more than 1% of total LMB flow

� watersheds straddling two international boundaries, thereby presenting opportunities for regional collaboration

� critical watersheds (sub-basins) with a major part of their area located in gazetted protected areas, thereby presenting opportunities for supporting integrated conservation and development projects. These projects would have the dual objective of enhancing biodiversity / reserve protection with community development in the buffer zones.

Using this approach has the following advantages:

� meaningful comparative evaluations can be conducted to select priority areas; and � appropriate combinations of biophysical and socioeconomic remedial actions can be

designed to maximise positive impacts from the investment of limited resources.

7.3 Checklists for Screening Projects for Socio-economic and Gender Issues

7.3.1 Socio-economic issues

As mentioned earlier, forestry and watershed management are complex of issues which will need to be addressed as part of MRC's enhanced consideration of socioeconomic issues. These issues are not single items, but rather represent a perspective which will need to be applied to evaluating proposals.

Projects and activities addressing the following areas will be given priority:

i) Community Forestry and Participatory Planning

The Thai approach of involving the local community in land use planning as part of forestry/watershed management programmes provides a working example for other LMB countries to develop their participatory land use planning strategies. It also provides the MRC with an ideal template against which proposals can be evaluated.

One of the most important features of the participatory approach is that it goes a long way towards recognising indigenous principles of land Organisation. It should also be born in mind that the issue of land tenure is a complex one in which the interests of the individual, the family, the community and the State all have claims. Land tenure is seldom codified for local groups but is instead transmitted by word of mouth and customary usage. Local groups have a variety of different orientations to the land which range along a spectrum from individual ownership to collective usage. Nor can these different usages be seen as discrete. It is not uncommon for households to own (or have permanent usufruct rights to) specific areas of agricultural land, while at the same time having rights to use or harvest parts, of the surrounding forest or for hunting and fishing.

Forestry/watershed management programmes must take these complex factors into account in planning land use and ensure that local participants see an equitable trade off between the loss or curtailment of traditional rights and advantages to be gained through proposed changes or innovations.

ii) Land Tenure and Joint Management

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The importance of tenurial arrangements needs to be given major consideration in project formulation. Local patterns of land use and ownership need to be identified and such patterns incorporated into project design wherever appropriate. This is particularly important in the protection of watershed forest cover and considerations of stewardship need to be given priority. The success of any watershed management programme is contingent on the support of the local population. Most local populations do not have title to land and therefore are unlikely to give long term commitment to area management plans because they have no guarantee that they will be able to continue living in the area. The codification and recognition of local land tenure (albeit unofficial) will serve to strengthen local commitment to sustainable land use practises by ensuring access rights and by empowering the community to protect their interests against outside intrusion.

iii) Poverty Alleviation and Impact on Livelihoods

The impact of development proposals on the lifestyle of the local population needs also to be considered. If proposals for forest protection require that local people will have to forgo part of their livelihood, then measures need to be developed to compensate for any loss. These may be in the form of new agricultural technologies, specific income generating activities or as direct grants for community initiatives.

The cost of such initiatives must be evaluated in terms of benefits to populations downstream. Increased watershed protection ensures a regularity and predictability of water flow that is vital for the continuance of agricultural and aquacultural activities downstream. This increased predictability and certainty of production at least ensures continued local livelihoods and presents conditions for improvement in crop production.

iv) Increased Access and In-migration

Economic development may bring problems for local communities through increased access. The construction of roads into previously inaccessible areas may on the one hand represent an advance in social development because of increased access to schools, medical facilities and better market access for crops, but it may also facilitate increased intrusion by outsiders migrating into the area to clear virgin land for farming.

Under these circumstances, not only may indigenous rights be ignored or marginalised, but environmental degradation is promoted through the permanent clearance of forest cover for farming or plantations. Local incomes are therefore adversely affected as the availability of swidden land and of forest products declines and the community becomes alienated from its major resource.

Forestry/watershed management proposals should protect against such measures as far as possible and an integrated development approach with strict land use zones, protected local access and the development of sustainable agricultural development proposals to compensate for loss in local income would appear to be necessary pre-conditions.

7.3.2 Gender issues

In Annex D (Participation and Gender), there are a number of suggested criteria to support the process of screening forestry and watershed management projects for gender issues. These include:

� priority topics for gender studies

� criteria to assess projects from the institutional level

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� criteria to assess projects from the community level

7.4 Assessment of Forestry and Watershed Management Projects listed in MRC's Work Programme

Criteria developed as part of the Strategy Study for Forestry and Watershed Management, were used to assess a number of projects proposed for support by MRC during the period 1983 to 1998. According to MRC's annual work program's a total of 13 forestry and watershed management projects were proposed for support during this 15 year. The results of this assessment are shown in Table 15. Of the 13 projects, 3 (23%) would riot have met the criteria for MRC support; a further 2 (15 %) were doubtful; and 8 (61 %) would have warranted support by MRC according to the criteria developed by the Strategy Study.

7.5 EIA Requirements

EIA requirements in the four LMB countries vary considerably. In Laos and Cambodia no clearly defined and formalised legal statement on EIA requirements for watershed and forestry management activities is in place. The MRC's recent strategic planning exercise has confirmed the need to integrate environment, economic and social considerations into all MRC programmes and environmental aspects will need to be screened in all steps of the project cycle (from identification, appraisal through approval and implementation).

It is expected that most project component activities proposed by the line agencies and NMCs would be environmental benign and would be exempted from an environmental and social assessment.

Table 15 - Assessment of forestry and watershed management projects proposed for MRC support during the 1983-1997 period to determine if they meet criteria of the strategy and action plan

Year Proposed

Project DescriptionLocation & Country of

Project

Meets Criteria

Yes/No/?

Reasons why Project Meets/Does Not Meet the Criteria Developed in the Strategy for Forestry and Watershed Management

1983 Forest/Fruit Tree Propagation/Planting

Lao PDR No Too narrowly focused; not of basin wide significance

1987 Soil erosion & flood Control

Lao, Thailand & basin wide

Yes Meets criteria for erosion and flood control measures with basin wide significance

1992 Watershed Rehabilitation Demonstrations in 4 countries

Basin Wide Yes Meets criteria for rehabilitation of degraded watersheds and scope is basin wide

1993 Create National Parks in Lower Mekong

Basin-wide Yes Meets criteria for Conservation of Natural Resources and is Basin Wide. OK

1994 Mangrove Forest Management in Ca Mau, Vietnam

Ca Mau Peninsula, Vietnam

In Doubt May be of significance for Mangrove management in Thailand and Cambodia

1994 Melaleuca Forest U. Minh, No Does not meet criteria for projects

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18 For definition on watershed classes see section 1.2.3 on methodology

Management Vietnam with Basin Wide Significance

1994 Forestry Coastal Zone Protection

Mekong Delta, Vietnam

No Does not meet criteria for projects with Basin Wide significance

1994/95 Review Watershed Management & Forestry

Basin Wide study

Yes Meets criteria for basin wide significance

1996 Water Resources & Environmental Management

Kok Watershed Thailand

Yes Outcome has basin wide significance so meets criteria for support by MRC

1996 Manage/Monitor Natural Forests to Protect Watershed

Sesan, Seprok & basin wide

Yes Meets criteria for Conservation of Resource; Meets transboundary watershed criteria

1996 Soil and water conservation in the small watershed areas

Nongkhai and Nakhon Ratchasima provinces (Thailand) and Vang Vieng district (Lao PDR)

Yes Meets all criteria

1997 Reforestation to protect Mekong Riverbank

Cambodia In Doubt Not basinwide; but may demonstrate practices for adoption by other LMB countries

Total Forestry and Watershed Management

13 Projects

Yes 18 projects (61%) Doubt 2 projects (15%) No 3 projects (23%)


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8 THE ROLE OF MEKONG RIVER COMMISSION AND THE NATIONAL MEKONG COMMITTEES

This chapter discusses the need for MRCS to adopt a more pro-active stance to forestry and watershed management, including strengthening operations and diversification of the project portfolio. A more active role is considered necessary in order to:

� address the constraints and opportunities facing development of the forestry and watershed management sectors, as described in chapter 3;

� achieve strategic objectives, as outlined in chapter 5; and

� support the interventions and actions identified and described in chapter 6.

In assessing the future role of MRC in forestry and watershed management, the consultant considered the following factors:

� strengths and weaknesses of the "regional approach" to forestry and watershed management;

� MRCS' strengths and weaknesses in forestry and watershed management; and � MRCS's mandate to facilitate and promote co-operation between agencies of the LMB

countries.

In defining the roles of MRC and its collaborating agencies, specific environmental and socio-economic conditions, which set the forestry and watershed management sectors apart from sectors in which MRC is involved, must be considered and explicit and distinct approaches developed to deal with them. For example:

� need to balance forest conservation, forest exploitation and development/utilization issues;

� need for clear definition of public service and private enterprise roles in forestry; � need for clear definition of evaluation criteria; � priority of human resources development, stakeholder consultation and participation; � consideration of budgetary and other institutional implications.

8.1 Overview of Past MRCS Activities in Forestry/Watershed Management

Over the last five years a limited number of watershed management / forestry projects have been executed. Table 16 refers. These projects were predominantly GIS-related information collection exercises, designed to provide analytical tools for land use planning and forest and watershed management. Despite the laudable progress made with data acquisition, basin-wide application is impeded due to the current restrictions by the Commission to widely disseminate the data as a common property. Whereas participating forestry departments have used the datasets already for their planning and decision-making purposes, key planning agencies in four LMB have not been given access to the datasets.

Table 16 - Overview of MRC executed watershed management and forestry projects

Name of project Donor Budget Objectives Years of operation

Forest Cover Monitoring GTZ US$ 3.5 Assessment of the prevailing condition of vegetative December

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Substantial improvement of the Commission's performance in the sector can be either be achieved through gradual, organic improvements, or through a more aggressive review and reorientation. Given the magnitude of the environmental problems in upper catchment areas throughout the LMB, and the increased attention paid by international aid agencies who are supporting a suite of regional projects related to the forestry and watershed management sector, the Commission needs to significantly increase its focus on this sector. A critical reorientation is required to avoid being marginalised by the international aid agencies, who are increasingly funding forestry and watershed management projects.

In addition, the MRC needs to place its role these sectors in perspective and align itself with other stakeholders engaged in forest and watershed initiatives. MRC needs to leverage its activities in collaborative partnerships with governments, civil society and the private commercial sector. This approach requires MRC to engage the major stakeholders in a broader dialogue and strategy formation that goes beyond direct interventions in the forest and watersheds. To allow for a full vetting of ideas and strategies, deliberate consultations and advice-seeking will need to take place.

8.2 MRCS Staff Capacity

Staff capacity within MRCS is currently restricted to one riparian expert of the rank of Officer-in-Charge. The post of Senior Project Officer (watershed management and forest) has been vacant since the expat officer left MRCS in August 1998, after six years of

million cover of LMB watersheds and development of a system to monitor and assess change in vegetative cover

1992-January 1999

Sustainable Management of Resources (Phase I)

GTZ US$ 2 million

Facilitates and promotes interactive information sharing by regional partners engaged in participatory approaches to sustainable watershed management.

December 1995-1998

Sustainable Management of Resources (Phase II)

GTZ US$ 2.3 million

Achievement of sustainable upland natural resources utilisation, conservation and rehabilitation

March 1998 -August 2001

Watershed Classification Project Phase I + II

SDC US$ 2.6 million

Assessment of geophysical characteristics of LMB watersheds (slope, elevation, landform) and classification of these watersheds according to the suitability of the major types of land uses for sustainable watershed management

1990 -June 1999.

Forestry-based Development of Long Xuyen Quadrangle Mekong Delta

AusAid US$ 1.2

million

Prevention of environmental impacts from large scale monoculture (Eucalyptus) forestry plantations by advocating plantations with indigenous tree species

December 1991 -January 1997

Watershed Classification Project (Phase III)

SDC US$ 0.8 million

Institutionalisation of the watershed classification application basinwide and at national levels

July 1999 -June 2001

Strategic Study SDC US$ 0.2 million

Strategic framework for the preparation and implementation of an MRC watershed management and forestry programme

June -December 1999

Pilot Study for Water Resources and Environment Management (Kok Sub-basin)

DFID US$ 0.6

million

Development, management and conservation of the natural resources of the Kok River Basin

June 1998 -January 2000

TOTAL FUNDING US$13.2 million

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service. SDC is currently considering funding the position of an international forestry expert.

The current staff compliment of the forestry unit is deemed insufficient. As can be concluded from chapters 3 and 4, a multi-disciplinary, holistic approach is required to address the main issues in the watershed and forestry sectors. The lack of multi-disciplinary skill base is a major constraint affecting the performance of the forestry and watershed management sectors in the region, MRC's forestry unit performance is no exception to this situation. To remedy this dilemma will have important ramifications for MRC's human resource planning, personnel policy and recruitment procedures. Hiring of additional foresters will not lead automatically to increased focus of MRC's Forestry Unit on people's participation in forestry.

It will also require a more pro-active approach from the MRCS to network with leading NGOs and INGOs, more frequent participation at international forums (regional workshops and conferences) to forge partnerships with a larger group of stakeholders as is currently the case. The chief role of the staff of the Forestry Unit is to facilitate the work of the ongoing MRC coordinated forestry projects in the region. This operational mandate has not been translated into active networking with relevant interest groups in the watershed and forestry sectors. As a result the latest trends in forestry policies by the world's leading institutions (WRI, FAO, World Bank and ADB, etc.) are not periodically reviewed and assessed for their validity in the Mekong context.

Inter-disciplinary and multi-disciplinary approach would also be facilitated by bringing the Environment and Hydrology units together with the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries units under one Natural Resources Management Division. The Environment and Hydrology is currently co-ordinating the Pilot Study for Water Resources and Environment Management (Kok Sub-basin) without much interaction from the Forestry Unit.

8.3 MRC's Strengths in Forestry and Watershed Management Sector

Through previous and ongoing regional projects supported by GTZ and SDC, MRC has developed a system of shared data bases, software tools and trained personnel in watershed management and forestry.

Major MRC developments in forest resource monitoring, watershed classification and natural resource management have been achieved over the last five years through the projects jointly implemented by MRC and bi-lateral donors. See section 8.1.

One of MRCS strong points has been the practice of engaging experts from the four riparian countries, to undertake its studies and project work. This minimises inputs by international consultants, and because the these riparian experts are seconded by line agencies in their respective countries, it has fostered technology transfer and dialogue between agencies in the riparian countries. In contrast, other multilateral and bilateral development agencies tend to recruit international and domestic private sector consultants-an approach which impedes development of local institutions and has proven a major constraint in fostering a sense of project "ownership" by line agencies in the riparian countries.

8.4 MRC's Weaknesses in Forestry and Watershed Management Sector

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MRC has a relatively weak image in the forestry and watershed management sector. Some typical perceptions include:

� insufficient experience and technical capacity in developing and implementing forestry and watershed management programmes on a field level. Out of the 14 priority projects (covering five component programmes) for which MRCS requires immediate funding for its Year 2000 Programme, only one deals with field level socioeconomic intervention–the majority of L MRCS projects are planning studies;

� lack of interest and meaningful participation by MRC staff in forestry and watershed management protect implementation. MRCS' Forestry Unit–established in 1997 (prior to that year it was part of the Agriculture, Irrigation, Forestry and Fisheries Unit under the Resources Development Division)–has yet to appoint a Unit Chief. The position of junior forestry officer became vacant in July 1999, and has yet to be filled.

� MRCS' forestry and watershed activities are funded by donor contributions to the core funding and by (8%) overhead charges on donor grants. The urgency need to generate new funding has led to a disproportionately strong focus on studies, strategies and action plans and project proposals which often lack a clear, coherent long-term strategy and programme approach.

� Although large quantities of valuable data have been collected through MRC projects such as WSC and FCMP projects, data collected has not been sufficiently disseminated and utilised in the client countries. More focus is required on development, dissemination and training in interpretation and utilization of forestry and watershed data and services in client countries.

There is a general feeling in the region that there is little added value by MRCS' involvement in conventional forestry and watershed management activities. The line agencies of the riparian countries are initiating many projects on their own and are receiving funding from many development agencies. However, MRCS is uniquely placed to address basin-wide issues such as wood trade; illegal logging; forest certification, trans-border conservation areas and fostering inter-country co-operation on a wide range of forestry issues, which could be coordinated by MRCS.

In the area of watershed management, MRCS' role is more obvious. There are numerous opportunities for basin-wide co-operation on upland environmental concerns that have common origins and/or would require regional solutions. A number of critical watersheds have been identified which straddle two or more LMB boundaries, thus presenting opportunities for regional projects (see Annex A).

The new MRCS vision shows that forestry and watershed management must be considered a priority issues. Watershed management, in particular, cuts across all sectors and should not be seen as being confined to the forestry or agricultural sectors; inter-regional co-operation is therefore required.

8.5 Strengths of a Regional Approach

In addition to sharing the Mekong River, the four countries of the Mekong have, to some extent similar natural and social conditions–climate, soil, biological resources, cultivation systems, population pressures, etc. Many of the problems constraining forestry sector development are common to all four countries. Exchange of experiences and lessons between the LMB countries may lead to more effective interventions and avoid duplication and repeat of ineffective strategies and actions.

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The main areas where a regional approach can strengthen and accelerate forestry and watershed management are highlighted in the following paragraphs:

� information exchange : The creation of conditions that promote and facilitate information exchange on forestry and watershed management activities with basin-wide significance, which can be enhanced through sharing of experiences. Examples: participatory approaches to forest resource management; forest plantation expansion, biodiversity conservation, forest protection; forest products marketing, forest crime management, etc.

� harmonisation of legislation: The adoption of new approaches to forest management and the introduction of new technologies has seen the drafting of a series of legislation. LMB countries stand to benefit from exchange on legal documents

� institutional strengthening All existing watershed management divisions lack experience in sharing planning procedures and tools with other riparian countries. However, it is recognised by LMB governments that such joint collaboration is of importance for their future work.

� research and studies on watershed management: Applied research on watershed management has only been undertaken in earnest in Thailand and Viet Nam. Laos and Cambodia could take advantage from an exchange of information and obtain the latest teaching material and reference books. At the same time universities and/or (donor-funded) projects should consider executing further research into watershed management issues, some of which could be studied in all LMB countries.

� regional awareness programmes and campaign specifically mounted to increase the awareness for watershed management issues. Very few initiatives have so far been launched. Design and production of such material is a costly event, and LMB countries stand to benefit from sharing designs and campaign material (incl. videos, booklets, posters, teaching material and reference books).

� forest conservation: establishment of cross-border protected areas can extend and strengthen the value of conservation of areas of high biodiversity value. (see Annex A);

� control of illegal logging and transborder wood trade: addressing the imbalances in wood supply and demand requires a regional approach, aimed at finding alternative ways of supplying Thailand and Viet Nam's growing wood demand, without threatening the long term sustainability of Lao PDR and Cambodia's forest resources (see Annex B).

8.6 Limitations of a Regional Approach

Experienced professionals working in the LMB have expressed their doubts over the effectiveness of a regional approach to solving forestry and watershed management problems in the LMB. Their doubts are founded in the following concerns:

� experience in the Mekong Basin countries has shown that national economic and political concerns and agendas, override regional ones;

� in most Mekong Basin countries national forestry and watershed issues and constraints require national solutions and there is little support for regional solutions to these issues;

� there are fundamental differences in geophysical, socioeconomic and political conditions between LMB countries, which require different approaches to solving common problems;

� a key action to improve forestry and watershed management is devolving responsibility for forest land in upper watersheds to local government, who would

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allocate this land to private households, communities and enterprises, to provide incentives for forest conservation and forest resource expansion. Land tenure is a national issue. Each country must find ways to restructure its forest land administration within its political-socio-economic context. There are no regional solutions.

� many countries of the region have yet to find solutions to problems facing their national forestry sectors. Progress toward clear national policies and actions should be demonstrated prior to adopting regional approaches.

8.7 MRC's Future Role in Forestry and Watershed Management in the LMB

MRCS principal role will be to facilitate, promote and co-ordinate regional approaches to watershed management and forestry programmes of national government agencies in the lower Mekong Basin.

MRCS will undertake to:

� assist NMCs with the formulation of Project Identification Notes (PINs) � raise funding from donor-agencies for basin-wide projects, based on project

documents agreed by the individual riparian countries and the MRC � hire consultants through established recruitment procedures � provide technical oversight and supervision for project implementation

In adopting this role MRC should:

� adopt a more "client focused", "service oriented", "demand driven" approach to working in the forestry and watershed management sectors;

� engage in dialogue and collaboration with relevant government agencies in the four LMB countries to identify and document issues and constraints facing these sectors;

� collaborate with other agencies (national and international) implementing projects to address issues and constraints facing the sector.

� concentrate on activities which complement and build upon the achievements of past and current activities in these sectors, namely: Watershed Classification Project; Forest Cover Monitoring Project; and Sustainable Natural Resources Management Project.

� concentrate on facilitating and promoting co-operation between agencies involved in seeking solutions to forestry/watershed management issues of basin-wide significance; i.e. identify, document and disseminate information on successful, "best practice" responses to regional forestry/watershed management problems.

� develop experience, capacity and credibility to respond effectively to regional forestry issues, before assuming a more active role in the design and co-ordination of appropriate responses to the issues constraining forest and watershed management.

8.8 National Mekong Committees

The tendency for the National Mekong Committees (NMCs) to become an all embracing planning body is very tempting given the general acceptance within the MRCS of its role as a lead institution and the drive to diversification. Consultant has noted that staff compliments are currently being increased and operational mandates are being reviewed.

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So far Cambodia and Lao NMCs have appointed watershed management specialists. The consultant questions, however the validity of increased staff compliments as these bear the inherent risk of creating parallel bureaucracies. Consultant therefore recommend that professional staff numbers are kept at a minimum. The NMC's main function of liaison with between MRCS and the various line departments does not justify a large office set-up.

8.9 National Line Agencies

Forestry departments in the four LMB countries have largely been following top-down and non-participatory systems of forest management. Various state policy documents in the four countries recognised the need to involve the communities in planning and management of forest. In spite of these developments, organisational structures, management systems and the culture of the state forestry departments have remained traditional and control-oriented. Protection of forests has been has been traditionally seen as a kind of policing function and forestry technologies are primarily focused on timber production.

Changes in line with the stated policies for devolution of authority and community based forestry involve a Herculean task of institutional change aimed at planned and systematic change in policies, attitudes, management systems, organisational structures and relationships.

This justifies MRC's continuing support for institutional strengthening of the pertinent line agencies.

9 ACTION PLAN

The proposed future roles of MRC, the NMCs and national forestry and watershed management agencies are discussed in the previous section. It is recommended that MRC engage in a process aimed at achieving its proposed role in regional approaches to forest and watershed management. This process is outlined below. To assist in implementing this process it is proposed that MRC establish a Forestry and Watershed Management Programme Coordination Unit, which would replace the present Forestry Unit. The composition and initial activities of this Unit are discussed in Project Identification Notes (PINs) 4.1 and 4.2. The implementation programme is shown in Table 17, Section 10.2.

Step 1: Establish Forestry and Watershed Management Programme Coordination Unitto guide MRC's involvement in the forestry and watershed management sectors of the Lower Mekong Basin.

Step 2: Initiate dialogue with NMCs and national line agencies responsible for forest and watershed management.

Step 3: Conduct a regional review and assessment of LMB forestry and watershed management, aimed at identifying:

� regionally significant issues and constraints to forestry development, and � current and planned actions being taken to address these issues and constraints. � Potential

Step 4: Review constraints and activities to identify common technical themes, cross-

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border issues, etc. and in collaboration with the 4 National Mekong Committees, develop a program of priority activities to be undertaken over a 5 year period - 5 year action plan. The program should be based on proposed national activities, consolidated to eliminate duplication of effort, and adapted to strengthen or broaden their regional significance.

Step 5: Seek agreement of the national agencies in the four countries on programme content and execution arrangements and commence implementation. Implementation of program elements by the line agencies in those countries which have demonstrated experience, capability and leadership in a particular field of activity.

For example:

� Thailand-land use planning and commercial tree plantation development; � Viet Nam-forest land allocation and protection contracts; barren hills reforestation; � Lao PDR-natural forest management and participatory forest management; � Cambodia-forest inventory and growth modelling; systems to monitor and control of

commercial logging in natural forests.

Step 6: Follow-up with periodic meetings, field visits, interactive web site, E-mail forums, etc. to:

� present and discuss findings, implementation problems, etc. � develop personal relationships between officials of national agencies � increase awareness, understanding and appreciation of regional forestry issues; and � foster attitude shifts toward regional co-operation on solving common problems, etc.

10 IMPLEMENTATION ARRANGEMENTS

10.1 Stakeholder Participation

Effective implementation of the Forestry and Watershed Strategy and Action Plan depends on the joint participation of the MRC's staff and the staff of relevant line agencies in the four LMB countries. Although the process of implementing the strategy will be initiated by MRC, it will rely on continuing collaboration with, and positive contribution to, the work programmes and country strategies of the national line agencies. Key to the programme's success is the development of a sense of "ownership" among the participating line agencies.

To ensure achievement of this goal, the participation and inputs of riparian experts from the four LMB countries were secured during strategy formulation.

Consultations were held with a wide range of people in line agencies, donor organisations, non-governmental organisations and private sector enterprises. Stakeholder consultations also included:

� regular meetings with MRCS staff working on forest, environmental and related projects;

� an internal briefing session with MRC staff in Phnom Penh in September 1999; � a steering committee briefing with high level LMB officials in Phnom Penh, in

November 1999; and � a basin-wide workshop for NMCs and line agencies in Vientiane, in November 1999

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Following approval and formal adoption of the strategy by MRC, this dialogue must be continued through periodic meetings aimed at developing and planning the implementation of programme elements. The implementation budget must include funds for regional meeting to and inputs. The regional discussion process will be aimed at introducing the broad elements of a forestry and watershed management strategy in the four countries and at sharing relevant experiences. It will also attempt to build a foundation for further consultations between these countries, aimed at building an open and collaborative inter-country dialogue on forest and watershed management issues. The ultimate outcome of this process would be a co-operative programme aimed at addressing the key focal areas and project proposals to develop solutions.

10.2 Implementation Programme

Table 17 shows a five-year implementation program and sequence of activities to put the four focal areas of the Strategy and Action Plan of Forestry and Watershed Management into operation. For details of the Individual Project, Appendix 3 refers.

Table 17 - Programme for implementation of the Strategy and Action Plan for Forestry and Watershed Management

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11 COSTS AND FINANCING REQUIREMENTS

Table 18 presents some initial costs estimates for individual projects. Appendix 3 presents further details

Table 18 - Cost estimates for implementation of individual projects

FOCAL AREA (NUMBER AND DESCRIPTION.

2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005

Focal Area 1 Security of Land Tenure and Resource Rights

PIN 1.1 Review Forest Land Ownership and Forest Land Allocation Procedures

100000

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12 REFERENCES

ADB. 1998. The Bank's policy on water. Working Paper. Consultation Draft, August 1998.

Ashwell, D. 1997. A national biodiversity prospectus : a contribution towards the implementation of the convention on biological diversity with particular emphasis upon Cambodia's terrestrial ecosystems. IUCN Cambodia, Phnom Penh.

BCEOM. 1997. Final Report Nam Ngum Watershed Management TA. Lao PDR. Final Report to the ADB.

Bernaesek, G.M. 1997. Large Dam Fisheries of the Lower Mekong Countries: Review and Assessment. Main Report. Prepared for the Mekong Rover Commission Project on Management of Fisheries reservoirs in the Mekong Basin. MKG/R. 97023. Vol. 1. August 1997.

Braatz. 1992. Conserving Biological Diversity. A Strategy for Protected Areas in the Asia-

PIN 1.2 Training on Qualitative Data Collection

300000 300000

Focal Area 2 Sustainable Forest Management

PIN 2.1 Facilitate Use of Data & Systems from MRC WSC and FCMP in Planning and Implementing Sustainable Forest Management

200000 200000 200000

PIN 2.2 Promote Market based Instruments to Increase Forest Management Returns and Provide Incentives for Forest Conservation and Forestry Practices

250000 250000

Focal Area 3 Ecosystem Improvement and Natural Resource Conservation

PIN 3.1 Cross-border Cooperation on Protected Area Management

200000 200000 200000 200000 200000

Focal Area 4 Strengthen Human Resources and Institutional Capacity

PIN 4.1 Support to Watershed Management and Forestry Sector Development & Cooperation

200000 200000 200000 200000 200000

PIN 4.2. Expand, Strengthen & Integrate Watershed Monitoring and Assessment

PIN 4.3 Build MRC's Capacity to Conduct Socio economic Monitoring and Assessment

80000 80000 80000 80000

TOTAL COSTS ESTIMATE 1080000 980000 1050000 730000 480000

Page 11 of 16

Pacific Region. World Bank

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Castren, Timber Trade and Wood Flow-study. Technical Report of the Poverty Alleviation and Environmental Management in Remote Greater Mekong Sub-Region Watersheds. Draft Report.

Clarke, J.E. Biodiversity and protected areas in the Greater Mekong Sub-region. Final Report. May 1999. HCG, Helsinki. Technical Report of the Poverty Alleviation and Environmental Management in Remote Greater Mekong Sub-Region Watersheds. Mimeographed document.

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Fahlen, A. 1999b. Land use aspects. Working Paper 8. Jaakko Poyry Consulting AB in joint Venture with Denconsult, International Consultant of Nelleman, Nielsen & Rauschenberder A/S. 1999a. Review Report (draft) Detailed Planning Phase for Formulation of the Mekong Basin Development Plan. DANIDA/SIDA and MRC. March 1999.

FAO. 1977. Guidelines for watershed management. Forest conservation and wildlife branch, forest resources division, forestry department. FAO, Rome.

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GOL (1998). Report to the 4th Meeting of the GMS Working Group on Environment, Hanoi, November 1998.

HCG. 1999. Executive Summary of the ADB Regional Technical Assistance: Poverty Alleviation and Environmental Management in Remote Greater Mekong Sub-Region Watersheds. Mimeographed document.

Hirsch, P. 1997. Dams, resources and the politics of environment in mainland Southeast Asia. In: Environment in Southeast, Resource and Resistance. Hirsch, P and C. Warren (eds.). Routledge, London.

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Iorns, M. C. J. and M. Hollick (eds.) 1998. Land Conflicts in Southeast Asia, Indigenous Peoples, Environment and International Law. Bangkok: White Lotus

Jaakko Poyry Consulting AB in joint Venture with Denconsult, International Consultant of Nelleman, Nielsen & Rauschenberder A/S. 1999a. Review Report (draft) Detailed Planning Phase for Formulation of the Mekong Basin Development Plan. DANIDA/SIDA and MRC.

Jaakko Poyry Consulting AB in joint Venture with Denconsult, International Consultant of Nelleman, Nielsen & Rauschenberder A/S. 1999b. Conceptual Framework, 2" Draft Report. Detailed Planning Phase for Formulation of the Mekong Basin Development Plan. DANIDA/SIDA and MRC.

Kern and Young, 1008. Asia and the Pacific. Excerpts from Trends it, Forestry Law in America and Asia. FAO Legislative study No. 66, Rome.

Lobo, C. and G. Kochendorfer-Lucius. 1995. The rain decided to help us: participatory watershed management in State of Maharashtra, India . Economic Development Institute of the World Bank/Social Centre/GTZ. EDI Learning Resources Series.

MacKinnon, J (Ed.). 1997. Protected areas systems review of the Indo-Malayan Realm. Asian Bureau for Conservation & The World Conservation Monitoring Centre. World Bank, Washington.

MacKinnon, J & K MacKinnon. 1986. Review of the protected area systems of the Indo-Malayan Realm. IUCN.

Makarabhirom, P. 1999. Forest crime management: a case study of forest law enforcement in Thailand. Mimeographed document of a paper presented at the World Bank-sponsored Mekong Basin Symposium on Forest Law Enforcement, Phnom Penh, June 14-16, 1999.

Morrison, E. And O. Dubois. 1998. Sustainable livelihoods in upland Vietnam: land allocation and beyond. Forestry and Land Use Series No. 14 IIED, London.

MRCS. 1994. Hydropower programme for the Lower Mekong Basin. Bangkok.

Page 13 of 16

MRCS. 1995. Agreement on the co-operation fir the sustainable development of the Mekong River Basin.

MRCS. 1996. Integrated Land and Water Use for Sustainable Agricultural development in the Lower Mekong Basin (basinwide). Final Report, October 1996. MKG/R. 9603 1.

MRCS/UNDP. 1997. Mekong River Basin Diagnostic Study. Final Report. MKG/R.97010.

MRCS/UNDP. 1998. Natural Resources Development Strategy for the Tonle Sap Area, Cambodia. (CMB/95/003). Final Report, Volume 1, Main Report, May 1998. NEDECO The Netherlands, in consultation with MIDA Agronomics, Bangkok, Thailand

MRCS/UNDP. 1998. Volume 2 Sectorial Studies Part B. Review of the forestry sector in Cambodia by Ty Sokhun, June 1997.

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MRCS. Mekong Watershed Classification. 1996b. The WSC Map Users Guide. Prepared by Centre for Development and Environment (CDE), University of Berne, Switzerland, for the MRCS.

MRCS. Mekong Watershed Classification. 1997. The WSC Data Users Guide. Prepared by Centre for Development and Environment (CDE), University of Berne, Switzerland, for the MRCS.

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MRCS. 1998b. Checklists for integrating gender in the project management cycle. Prepared by A. Stephens, MKG/R. 98024, October 1998.

MRCS. 1998c. 1999 Work Programme. (from vision .... to action). MKG/R.98026 V.2, December 1998.

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MRCS. 1998e. Gender Strategy. Endorsed by the Fifth Meeting of the MRC Council, 27-28 October, Hanoi.

MRCS. 1998f. Guidelines for the incorporation of social and economic dimensions into the activities of the Mekong River Commission and its riparian members.

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APPENDIX 3

FOCAL AREA 1 - SECURITY OF LAND TENURE AND RESOURCE RIGHTS

Objective:

To provide the countries of the Lower Mekong Basin with an overview of the status, issues, consequences, potential solutions, and pitfalls to avoid in the process of restructuring forest land administration. Various aspects of land administration in the four LMB countries would be reviewed and compared: e.g. how forest land is identified, classified, controlled, owned, allocated, valued, priced, converted, protected etc.

To document the current status of forest land ownership and the procedures in place of forest land allocation in the four countries of the Lower Mekong Basin and to recommend measures to facilitate the allocation of forest land to communities and private enterprises, in order to promote its conservation and improvement/expansion of forest resources.

Justification:

Environmental and human rights groups, together with international development agencies, have been urging reforms to land and forestry laws, stressing that the allocation of more secure rights to traditional forest user groups would provide incentives for environmentally sound natural resource management. However controversy continues regarding the extent of land to be reserved for the exclusive occupation and use of indigenous forest dwellers; and on the whether the state should retain the right to exploit strategic natural resources, within the reserved areas. Solutions to the crucial problem of forest depletion are being sought through the following types of forest policy interventions:

� provision of secure, unambiguous property rights on forest land; � decentralisation of forest land administration; � recognition of indigenous rights over forest lands; � community-based forest management; � restructuring revenue systems to ensure that fees charged for products and services

provided by public forest lands more closely reflect the true economic, social and environmental values and the negative external impacts of forest exploitation.

Security of tenure is seen as a prerequisite for rural people to manage their forest resources in a sustainable manner. Tenure security must also have the force of the law supporting it in order to protect these rights from unscrupulous parties who would want the land for economic gain.

The significance of secure property rights to forest conservation and sustainable forest management cannot be over-emphasised. Security of property rights is central to the concept of sustainable forest management, regardless of location or political system. Generally, this security is the only incentive people have to encourage them to adopt long-term sustainable forest management. Security of land tenure also permits them to access credit to develop the land and optimise its productivity. Undermining forest land tenure security, widen-nines the entire concept of sustainable forest management.

There is general international consensus that there is a need to delimit, demarcate and establish secure forest and land tenure rights for indigenous people to ensure their cultural

PIN 1.1 - Review Forest Land Ownership And Forest Land Allocation Procedures

Page 1 of 12

survival and to improve environmental protection. In most areas where tropical forests are the traditional habitat of indigenous or tribal forest dwellers, their use rights have been gradually eroded by natural resources exploitation and development projects. In many of these areas, there have been several decades of human and ecological degradation.

Government policies in the LMB countries relating to land use planning and laws supporting land use policy vary considerably. The proposed review would be aimed at identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the current systems in order to develop workable solutions to address this issue and VIA thus reduce forest depletion.

Activities:

� Conduct a review of forest land ownership in the LMB countries, identifying the area of each forest type (protection, production, conservation) and its current ownership.

� Identify and document successful experiences in allocating forest land to private individuals, communities and enterprises. Provide details on the background, location, conditions, etc.

� Identify the prerequisites to successful forest land ownership, i.e. what things must be in place to support and ensure that forest land in maintained under well stocked and managed forests.

� Make recommendations on appropriate policies, legislation and administrative arrangements which would result in expansion of private forest land ownership.

Inputs:

� Senior forest land specialist with experience in the lower Mekong region to develop and co-ordinate programme activities.

� Riparian experts with forest land ownership and landuse patterns in LMB to collect information on forest land ownership and to implement programme activities in the 4 riparian countries.

� Support staff to collate data, prepare reports, disseminate data, establish web-page, etc.;

� Office Space, Transport, Communications, Meeting/Seminar/Workshop Costs.

Duration: 3-6 months

FOCAL AREA 1 - SECURITY OF LAND TENURE AND RESOURCE RIGHTS

Objective:

� To train staff of line departments, Women's Organisations and other stakeholders (NGO's/CBOs, etc) involved in the implementation of forest policies and the

Budget: US$

Total Project costs 100,000

Funds sought: US$ 100,000

PIN 1.2 - Training on Qualitative Data Collection on Gender, Culture, Forest Land and Resources Rights and Management among Ethnic Communities

Page 2 of 12

land/forest adjudication process, in the collection of qualitative gender-specific data (PRA) in selected villages of critical watershed/forest areas in the four countries.

� To initiate an awareness of the need of community Organisation with full participation of ethnic minorities, in particular women, for sustainable management of watershed/forest development.

� To strengthen ethnic communities, in particular women, to support themselves in improving their local watershed/forest area, while simultaneously improving their socioeconomic condition.

Justification:

A common and main problem identified in all the four riparian countries is that the people living in the forest, have no longer access and control (decision-making) over their natural resources. Legislation is lacking which ensures officially acknowledged and endorsed land and forest use (or usufruct/property rights documents). To formulate and to implement participatory and gender sensitive policies and legislation regarding forest land ownership and forest land allocation, collection of qualitative data at the local level is an absolute necessity. The numerous ethnic minorities living in watershed/forest areas have their own tradition of customary forest/land rights and management depending on their cultural traditions and indigenous knowledge. To prepare effective action plans for land tenure and resource rights in critical watersheds, these actual

practices of customary rights and management and how they have been impacted by new land/forest land and resource allocations should be studied.

Activities:

Training in participatory, qualitative, gender-sensitive data collection has to be given in the four countries for the implementing line department staff, members of Women's Organisations and others stakeholders. Teaching material (manuals) should be prepared in advance in the four languages. Workshops should be organised to test the content of the manuals by going in the field and to practice PRA and Gender analysis at the village level. Preparation, production and distribution of visuals to explain the people in the villages the purpose and methodology of the data collection. Implementation of ethnic minority and gender specific data collection in carefully selected watersheds based on watershed classification/deforestation and socioeconomic criteria Workshops in the four countries to process the collected data. Training at the workshops in analysing and interpretation of data, report writing with findings and recommendations. Meetings with the four national committees to discuss the findings and to draft adjudication and legislation documents. Formal meetings at Government level in the four countries to discuss and agree upon draft documents for the best practice of the adjudication and legislation of land rights for forest communities and in particular women of those communities.

Inputs:

Two female senior (one riparian and one international) gender/anthropologists, with long experience in the lower Mekong region to develop and co-ordinate programme activities. Two short term (international watershed/forest expert, and institutional) experts.

Four junior riparian gender experts/trainers to implement programme activities in the 4 riparian countries. Staff of Line departments, Women's Organisations, other interest groups.

Support staff to assist in data collection and processing, prepare reports, disseminate data, etc.; office space, Transport, Communications, Meeting/Seminar/Workshop Costs

Page 3 of 12

Duration: two years

FOCAL AREA 2 - SUSTAINABLE FORESTRY MANAGEMENT

Objective:

To promote and demonstrate the use of data from the MRC/GTZ Forest Cover Monitoring Project (FCMP) and MRC/SDC Watershed Classification Project (WSC) in the design and implementation of regional (LMB) Sustainable Forestry and Watershed Management initiatives.

Justification:

FCMP and WSC produced maps, statistical data bases, etc. for the major sub-basins of the Lower Mekong Basin. However, unless these are well explained and presented in an intelligible form, they will not find acceptance and use by those responsible for mid- and long-range policy making and planning. To date there are few examples of effective transition from data acquisition and interpretation, to planning and implementation of activities designed to address the major

constraints and opportunities facing the development of the watersheds and forests of the lower Mekong basin. There is an urgent need to facilitate the use of available data by potential users in forestry and watershed management planning.

Activities:

The activities would consist of:

� a needs assessment to determine the scope and type of applications for use of this data; and

� a series of promotion, demonstration and training activities aimed at:

� presenting the data in more user friendly formats and

� training existing and potential users to employ this data in planning and implementing various aspects of forestry and watershed management.

Needs Assessment:

Budget: US$



PIN 2.1 - Facilitate Use of Data & Systems from NMC Watershed Classification & Forest Cover Mapping Projects in Planning & Implementing Sustainable Forest Management

Page 4 of 12

Using the 23 national experts trained under the FCMP, conduct an assessment of forest cover data requirements of national watershed and forestry agencies, projects and initiatives including:

� Forest and Watershed Management Policy and Planning;

� Forest management plans and estimation of sustainable harvest levels;

� Planning and implementing reforestation programmes;

� Monitoring and enforcement of logging operations;

� Planning of protected areas, etc.

Promotion and Demonstration,.

� Enhance staff capability in use of image enhancing software; � Periodic meetings, seminars, training sessions, field visits, interactive web site, and E-

mail forums on the use, results and implications of forest cover and watershed management;

� Preparation and dissemination of promotional materials on available products, contents, scales, applications, etc.;

� Preparation and dissemination of user-friendly software products for making maps, copies, print-outs, more accessible to users;

� Forest Cover and Watershed Classification maps at appropriate scales for provincial-level plans;

� Clarify MRC ownership of data and facilitate user access from the FCMP databases;

Time frame: 36 months (2001 - 2003)

Inputs:

Senior International Advisor -(36 person-months);

Senior National Experts -(180 person months)

FOCAL AREA 2 - SUSTAINABLE FOREST MANAGEMENT

Budget: US$

Total Project costs 1,200,000

National inputs 600,000

External funds required 600,000


PIN 2.2 - Promote Market Based Instruments to Increase Forest Management Returns and Provide Incentives for Forest Conservation and Improved Forestry

Page 5 of 12

Objective:

To promote and demonstrate the use of market-based instruments to improve forestry practices and conserve forest resources in the four lower Mekong Basin countries.

Justification:

There is an opportunity to take advantage of improved market access and price premiums for wood products from forests which are certified as sustainably managed. There are also opportunities for expanding markets for non-traditional forest products and services such as: eco-tourism, carbon offsets, bottled mineral water. There is also the potential for transfer payments from lowland water users (agriculture, hydro electric, pulp and paper developments, etc. to upland forest-based communities to conserve and improve the management of their forest.

The MRCS can take a leading role in identification of these opportunities and promoting their use. A program of development, pilot testing and dissemination of information on the potential benefits of the following instruments is envisioned:

� Eco-Tourism; � Carbon-Offset Trading; � Forest Certification; � Non-wood Forest Products; and � Transfer Payments From Lowland Agricultural Land Users To Upland Forest Users.

Activities:

Assess opportunities for the implementation of Eco-Tourism; Carbon-Offset Trading, Forest Certification, and Transfer Payments from Lowland Agricultural Land Users to Upland Forest Users. A number of international agencies have already focused on these issues at a national level. MRC's role would be to develop specific Mekong basin-wide criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management.

Time frame: 2 years.

Inputs

FOCAL AREA 3 - ECOSYSTEM IMPROVEMENT AND NATURAL RESOURCE

Practices

International expert in marketing non-traditional forest products and services:

24 months

NMCs and National Government Agencies staff: months 100 person

Budget: US$

Total Project costs: $500,000

National inputs $250,000

Surveys, studies, training, workshops, seminars $150,000

External funds required $100,000 Funds sought: US$ 500,000

Page 6 of 12

CONSERVATION

Objectives:

� To promote, co-ordinate and initiate dialogue between LMB countries on crossborder co-operation in the field of protected area management

� To carry out feasibility studies for ecosystem improvement and biodiversity conservation in transborder reserves.

Justification:

Countries of the Lower Mekong Basin have a long history of establishing and managing areas for the purpose of protecting unique ecosystems and species, although different management prescriptions are applied to various types of protected areas in the various countries.

While all four countries have defined protected area policies, enforcement is weak and encroachment, poaching of wild animals and unsustainable extraction of non timber forest products is continuing unabated. Local communities view the natural resources within protected areas as open access resources. The ongoing loss of forest cover and conversion of natural habitats in agricultural land has severe long term impacts on the biodiversity in the region from the effects of insularisation, caused by the process of habitat fragmentation and isolation.

Many of the protected areas are found along national borders, and some have contiguous protected areas on the opposite side of the border, which would require transborder co-operative management. Another key management issue is that the areas protected by each country do not fully represent the range of the natural ecosystems and habitats of the LMB as a whole. Integration of the design and management of the national protected area systems in the LMB countries should be a priority for sub-regional co-operation.

Activities:

For all LMB countries the level of land designated for conservation purposes needs to be considered in the light of the long-term financial viability and sustainability of protected area management.

Projects areas of interventions include:

� detailed protected area review to assess whether the current network fully encompass the wide range of ecosystems.

� review of less valuable designated areas which could be sacrificed for other land use purpose to free limited funds for high priority conservation areas, as well as paying for management interventions in the bufferzones (to improve the socioeconomic conditions of the local communities living in areas adjacent to the parks and sanctuaries).

� review to identify ecological corridors linking protected areas with the forest estates/logging concession areas.

� planning exercises to consider cross-border protection issues and requirements for joint management of transborder reserves (such as Virachey National Park in Cambodia on the border with Laos; Xe Piane National Biodiversity Conservation Area

PIN 3.1 - Cross-border Co-operation on Protected Area Management

Page 7 of 12

in Laos on the border with Cambodia; and Nakai Nam Theun National Biodiversity Conservation Area in Laos on the border with Viet Nam, etc.).

Time frame: 60 months

Inputs: Intermittent inputs by a senior protected area specialist and community development specialist and various short-term inputs by international and national specialists (Biodiversity database specialist and Land use planning specialist).

FOCAL AREA 4 - STRENGTHEN HUMAN RESOURCES AND INSTITUTIONAL CAPACITY

Objectives:

� to promote co-operation in sustainable development, utilization, conservation and management of Mekong River Basin's forests and watersheds

� to establish a Forestry and Watershed Management Programme Support Unit within the MRCS

� to assist the NMCs and line agencies with the development of Forestry and Watershed Management National Action Plans

Justification:

The MRCS is well placed to play a key role in sub-regional co-operation on forestry and watershed management issues. This co-operative approach is a prerequisite to effective forestry and watershed management. Many of the most critical watersheds of the LMB are shared by two countries. Further environmental degradation of these watersheds will have significant repercussions in other downstream areas of the Mekong Basin.

A MRC Strategy and Action Plan has been drafted which focuses on forest protection and rehabilitation of LMB's critical watersheds. Substantial improvement of the Commission's performance in the sector can only be achieved through a more outward focused review and re-orientation. Given the magnitude of the environmental problems taking place in upper catchment areas throughout the LMB, the increased attention paid by international aid agencies who are supporting a suite of regional projects related to the forestry and watershed management sector, the Commission needs to significant increase its focus to this sector. Substantial technical backstopping is required for MRC for a critical reorientation to develop a credible and meaningful role in interacting with various

Budget US$



External funds required it: 900,000


PIN 4.1- Support to Watershed Management and Forestry Sector Development & Co-operation

Page 8 of 12

stakeholders

There is a need to translate the MRC Strategy and Action Plan into National Action Plans. This will require guidance and support from the MRCS.

Activities:

The role of the programme support unit (PSU) will be the co-ordination and management of the overall watershed management / forestry programme. It will undertake to: (i) assist NMCs with the formulation of Project Identification Notes (PINs); (ii) raise funding from donor-agencies for basin- wide projects; (iii) seek agreements of the individual riparian countries on projects; (iv) hire consultants through established recruitment procedures; and (v) provide technical oversight and supervision for project implementation.

In close co-operation with the National Mekong Committees the unit staff will secure basin-wide co-operation and information exchange through periodic meetings, workshops field visits, the development of an interactive web site (in co-operation with the Natural Resources Management Project staff), and E-mail forums.

The PSU will assist the NMCs and Line Agencies with the drafting of the National Action Plans.

Time frame:

60 months, starting on 1 January 2001 (scheduled).

Inputs:

Senior International Advisor (60 person-months); riparian experts, periodic meetings, field visits, seminars, workshops, interactive web site, and E-mail forums.

FOCAL AREA 4 - STRENGTHEN HUMAN RESOURCES AND INSTITUTIONAL CAPACITY

Objectives:

� To strengthen capacity to monitor and assess of forests and watershed characteristics.

� To expand the information base on watershed and forest cover to the remaining States of the Greater Mekong Basin, i.e. Myanmar and Yunnan province of China.

� Integrate hydrological data–precipitation, discharge rates, water quality, sediment

Budget US$





PIN 4.2 - Expand, Strengthen & Integrate Watershed Monitoring & Assessment

Page 9 of 12

load, etc. with physical characteristics of watersheds–vegetative cover, soils, elevation, slope, land form, etc.

� Correlate physical characteristics of watersheds (sub-basins) and hydrological characteristics, to assist in designing and implementing interventions.

Justification:

Data from the MRC forest cover monitoring project and watershed classification project have proven invaluable in identifying problem areas; and designing interventions. However, data on the relationships between the physical characteristics of sub-basins (e.g. vegetative cover, soil type, slope, elevation, etc.) and the discharge characteristics and quality of the sub-basin's water production would improve capability to design more appropriate and effective interventions.

Data collected from the extensive network of hydrological monitoring stations maintained through out the basin, should be expanded and integrated with data on the physical characteristics of the sub-basins, in order to correlate physical characteristics of sub-basins and their water run-off characteristics. Integration of data on the physical; social and hydrological characteristics of a sub- basin would assist in developing more appropriate, effective and sustainable solutions. This aspect should be a priority area of interest for sub-regional co-operation.

Activities:

� Using data collected in the Watershed Classification and Forest Cover monitoring projects, identify the critical watersheds.

� Assess hydrological monitoring system in the Mekong Basin and identify the technical, human and financial resources needed to modify and expand the system to provide the data required to correlate water flows with the physical characteristics of the critical sub-basins. (Watershed Class I and 2).

� Establish the required additional hydrological monitoring equipment and begin collecting, collating and assessing data in order to monitor, document and assess conditions in the watershed.

� Integrate hydrological data-precipitation, discharge rates, water quality, sediment load, etc.- with physical characteristics of watersheds-vegetative cover, soils, elevation, slope, land form, etc.

� Establish correlation(s) between the 1) biophysical; 2) socioeconomic and 3) hydrological characteristics of watershed sub-basins, to assist in designing and implementing appropriate and effective interventions.

� Expand the information base on watersheds and forest cover of the lower Mekong Basin to include Myanmar and Yunnan province of China, i.e. the "Greater Mekong Basin" (GMB).

Time frame: 3-5 years

Inputs: manpower and equipment

Budget US$




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FOCAL AREA 4 - HUMAN RESOURCES AND INSTITUTIONS CAPACITY STRENGTHENING

Objective:

� To develop capability in, and implement a system for, the MRCS and NMCs to apply socioeconomic monitoring and assessment to forestry and watershed projects and programmes being supported under the auspices of the MRC.

Justification:

LMB countries have made considerable progress toward reducing poverty. Information flows from development of a socioeconomic monitoring system can facilitate interventions on poverty reduction. However, greater integration between MRCS, NMC's and line agencies is required to ensure that accurate and)timely field data is collected, analysed and used to plan remedial actions.

MRCS will play a central role in such undertakings and will have responsibility for overseeing data analysis and interpretation and for organising the training of field staff. This will necessitate the strengthening of the MRCS through the recruitment of a full-time socio-economist.

The monitoring of socioeconomic change in the LMB will require the development of activities in both the MRC and the four NMCs. In the absence of existing capability in this field, a system will need to be developed.

Activities/Inputs:

� establish links with NMCs and government line agencies and develop capability to collect, collate and analyse socioeconomic statistical information;

� design and implementation baseline studies/surveys to assess the nature and magnitude of change

� provide hardware (computers) and appropriate data analysis programmes; � train MRCS and NMC staff in data entry and statistical analysis programmes; � develop capability in MRCS and NMCs to interpret results of socio economic surveys.

Time frame:

60 months, starting on 1 January 2001 (scheduled). a

Inputs:

Senior Socio-economist (30 person-months); Short-term riparian experts 60 person months, seminars, workshops, meetings and field visits.


PIN 4.3 - Build MRC's Capacity to Conduct Socio Economic Monitoring and Assessment

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Back the Table of Contents

Budget: US$


Socio-Economist 100,000

Riparian Experts 100,000

Travel, Living Expenses etc. 200,000

External funds required ?


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watershed management and forestry strategy and action plan ... · 1.4 strategy and action plan...

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