FOREST LAND USE PLANNING AND FOREST LAND ALLOCATION IN DONG TAM COMMUNE - DONG PHU DISTRICT BINH PHUOC PROVINCE

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1 Page 1 of 10 Management Board of Project GCP/VIE/020/ITA Dong Phu District, Binh Phuoc Province REPORT ON FOREST LAND USE PLANNING AND FOREST LAND ALLOCATION IN DONG TAM COMMUNE - DONG PHU DISTRICT BINH PHUOC PROVINCE The project "Strengthening national capacity to implement the tropical forestry action plan in Viet Nam" (GCP/VIE/020/ITA) is funded by the Government of Italy via the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Its executing agency is the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD). Dong Tam Commune in Dong Phuoc District - Binh Phuoc Province is one of four project areas. Forest land allocation (FLA) and land use planning (LUP) are the two main activities of the Project. Work started in May 1997 and was completed in October 1997 by the District Working Group. The approach applied by the project was different in that the district and the villagers themselves were directly involved in allocation. Therefore, results were accepted and supported by the villagers, leading to high feasibility. This report aims at describing the method and achievements, analyzing strong or weak points in the method, and then recommending a number of modifications to make it more appropriate to the local conditions in the LUP and FLA. The report consists of: Formulating the approach and applying it in reality Background information of Dong tam Commune Land use planning Forest land allocation Analysis and comments PART I FORMULATING THE METHODOLOGY AND ORGANIZING IMPLEMENTATION 1. Formulating the methodology With the consultation of International Specialists, the National LUP/FLA experts and the Project Management Boards of 4 districts (Tien yen, Nam dong, Ia grai and Dong Phu) formulated the participatory methodology of land use planning and forest land allocation in March This method was on trial first in Nam dong - Thua Thien Hue, then in other districts. Dong Phu was the last district - from May 1997 up to now. The particular characteristics of this method are: harmony between Government and villager demands in LUP

2 Page 2 of 10 and the reorganization of commune and village production. Villagers themselves were involved in LUP/FLA. Moreover, the lesson which the Hue Workshop (15 Oct. 1996) focused on was that a simple, clear and realistic method should be applied. The LUP / FLA method has now been tested in Dong Tam Commune - Dong Phu District. Is it hoped that experience can be drawn from this via workshops at both district and national levels. Shortcomings or problems should be discovered and solved in accordance with the situation in each locality. 2. Implementation of LUP and FLA in Dong Phu To implement LUP/FLA in Dong tam Commune (FAO/ITALY), a Working Group (WG) consisting of 7 members was established (according to Decision 120 /QD/UB dated May 1997). The head of the WG is the officer from the Forest Protection Station of the District. Other members are from the Cadastral Section, Economic Section, Suoi nhung and Dong Xoai State Forest Enterprises, and Representatives of Dong Tam Commune. To strengthen its capacity, the WG received a training course on LUP/FLA for two days at the district People s Committee office (19-20 May 1997). The land use planning was carried out in Dong tam commune for a month (June - July 1997). After the planning, a preliminary conference was organized at the district office on 25/6/1997 to draw experience and prepare to implement land allocation. Land allocation was implemented during 4 months (from July to October 1997). During the FLA process, the District Management Board was supported by the National Project staff, the District People's Committee, the Provincial Department of Forest Protection, the Cadastral Department and other district sections. Special technical assistance was provided by FIPI (Forest Inventory Planning Institute in the South) for 3 months. PART II BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON DONG TAM COMMUNE. Dong Tam Commune is in Dong Phu District. It is 9 km from Dong Xoai District along National Road N It is bordered by Long Phuoc District in the North, Bu Dang in the East, Tan Phuoc Commune in the South and Dong Xoai in the west. total area: 17,360 ha. administration: there are 7 villages in the Commune: Villages N o 1,2,3 and 4, Suoi Binh, Cau Hai, and Suoi Doi. total population: 11,020, of which 4,978 are members of the labor force. ethnic groups: there are 12 ethnic groups: Stieng, Tay, Nung, Khmer, Muong, Chau Ro, Man, Giao, Cham, Hoa, Sang Dui and Kinh. Land management: there are 6 owners that are managing land: the District Forest Protection Station, Fixed Cultivation and Sedentarization of the District, Commune and National Organizations; Suoi Nhung and Dong Xoai State Forest Enterprises. Some land has been occupied and cultivated by those in the commune and from other regions. In , there was a rush of free migration to Dong Tam commune, which led to the clearing of much forest land. Slash and burn cultivation of the forest for food production damaged 1,000 ha of forest (50% of the area). This situation may be avoided or reduced by local land use planning. However, efforts need to be supported by the Government for sustainable development.

3 Page 3 of 10 PART III: LAND USE PLANNING RESULTS A. Commune land use planning 1. Completion of the current land use map Method: Review all existing materials and maps in combination with the results of the field survey and inventory made by the Working Group. 2. Table of the current land use. Forest & Forest land Area (ha) Current land use owners Dong xoai SFE Suoi nhung SFE District Fixed. and Send. District Forest P.S. District and Commune National Org Total area I. Forest land / With forest a. Natural forest Mixed forest Lo o species b. Plantation forest / Without forest Shrub land (Ia) Shrub and regeneration Encroachment II/Agriculture land Annual species Paddy rice and arable crops Hilly rice Perennial species Mixed garden III. Special use land IV. Housing land 77 77

4 Page 4 of 10 V. Others Soil types and soil resource Based on cadastral map scale 1/10,000,000 and survey results made by Thu Duc Forestry University, the Commune has the following types: No Type of soil Area (ha) Distribution Character LUP 1 Basaltic soil (red grey) 1,137 North and East of the Commune high slope vegetation cons. 2 Basltic soil (red grey) 2,771 North and East low slope good layer Industrial spec 3 Basaltic soil (yellow red) 526 In the centre of the Commune 4 Basaltic soil (red grey) 902 Along National road Km N o Soil on clay shale 1,080 North-West and East of the C. high slope thin layer low slope average layer slope, stone mixed. fast growing species. different forest species 6 Yellow red soil on clay shale 8,129 East area of the C. low slope average layer forest species 7 Old alluvial soil 315 Stream sides and valley (in the center of the C.) plain/thick layer soil paddy rice and arable crops 3. Current Land Use Planning Map A village meeting was called after preparing the current land use map. At this meeting, the Working Group discussed LUP with the villagers ( ). Items Area (ha) Rate (%) Total I. Forest land 1. Stable forest to stopping cutting 2. Industrial and valuable species 3. Agroforestry 4. Other 17,360 12,330 4,897 4,000 2,

5 Page 5 of 10 II. Agriculture land 1. Rice, arable crops 2. Perennial trees III. Special use 1. National defense 2. Swamp land 3. National road ( 2nd phase) 4. Safe corridor of the 500 KW wire 5. Infrastructure - social welfare - School - Health care station - Local roads - Cemeteries IV. Housing land - Housing - Home garden V. Other , B. Land use planning Villagers took part in the discussion of how to use land in the future; their ideas are as follows: Total area: ha of which 1. Forest land: ha - Regeneration: 79.4 ha - Tree - planting, agroforestry: ha 2. Agriculture land - Industrial species (rubber, coffee, cashew) ha - Annual cr0ps ( hilly rice, arable crops): 36.0 ha

6 Page 6 of Housing land: 18 ha 4. Other 23.3 ha - Local roads 12 ha - School, Health station: 1 ha - Public playground: 0.3 ha - Reserved land 10 ha C Reallocate a part of Forest Enterprise land to the Commune: "Local level planning must be substantiated with regional and national land use plans for sustainable development". The Dong Phu People's Committee and Cadastral Department submitted to the Provincial People's Committee to transfer ha of Dong Xoai and Suoi Nhung State Forest Enterprises to the commune. This was approved by Decision QD 1972/QD-UB ref. This resulted in a total of ha (mentioned above) allocated to Dong Phu to implement Project GCP/VIE/020/ITA. This is an important Decision in the allocation of land to the local people. PART IV FOREST LAND ALLOCATION The LUP was approved by the District (June 1997) and the Working Group began to implement the second part, or FLA. The District Management Board organized a 2 day training course (27-28 June) to provide technical training by National Project staff and FIPI N o II. 1. Preparation The Working Group (WG) made a plan and proposed method of FLA, then submitted the proposal to the District People Committee for approval. At the same time, the WG studied LUP in order to use it in carrying out FLA. 2. Method The land allocation was conducted in 12 steps: 1. The first meeting involved commune authorities and heads of villages to agree upon the method and plan of LA. 2. A villagers' meeting was held in which locals were briefed and given applications for land distribution. Groups of households were divided to check the field together with the working group.

7 Page 7 of 10 3.The applications were compared with the LUP map. The exact borders of households were defined. All households demarcated their land using poles. 4. Measuring the regeneration forest: identify the exact borders, demarcate with poles, measuring the area to map the forest regeneration allocated to commune later. 5. The location and area of the plots used by various households were defined on a map, and the same for the regeneration forest; this was then submitted to the District People's Committee. 6. A general village meeting was called again to present the plots used by each household (border and area). Comments (only on agricultural land) could be submitted by households within 10 days. 7. Mapping the FLA to submit to the district for approval. 8. A third village meeting was called. At this meeting, participants were informed of the plan of FLA. Applications were distributed. LUP was discussed and negotiated. 9. Applications from households were collected. The households to receive allocated land were listed. 10.The registry of the plots allocated to each household was presented to the Chairman of the District People's Committee for comments. 11.The Chairman of the District People's Committee signed a decision to allocate land and land allocation in the field was carried out. 12. The Cadastral Registry and land use certificates were made for each household receiving land for approval by the District People s Committee. 3. Results of forest land allocation 1.Total forest land area allocated: ha - Regeneration forest allocated to the commune: 62 ha - Forest land to households: 97.6 ha 2. Total households: 50 Plots allocated 54 Of which: - Stieng minority: 13 hhs - Tay: 9 hhs - Nung: 5 - Kinh: 23 Minimum area/hh: Maximum area /hh: 0.47 ha 7.6 ha 3. Registry of land allocation consists of: Applications

8 Page 8 of 10 Decision of land allocation by District People's Committee. Receipt of field land allocation Household land allocation map using scale 1/2,000 Project land allocation using scale 1/5,000 Map of regeneration forest allocated to the commune scale 1/5,000 Land use certificates. 1. Participation in LUP and FLA PART V ANALYSIS AND COMMENTS During the land use planning and forest land allocation process, a series of village meetings were called to get the comments of the people regarding the process. During the survey stage, the working group involved 10 villagers who know clearly their current land use and their topographical conditions to do the transects and assess the current land use. On planning, the Working Group spent 3 days in the field walking, and involved 3 villagers in preparing the land use planning. The first village meeting took place over 2 days, and 108 villagers were present. At this meeting, discussion and negotiation of LUP was carried out. On 21 June 1997, a meeting was held at the Commune. Representatives of the two State Forest Enterprises, heads of villages, and representatives of commune social organizations were all present to agree upon the LUP. The land allocation process in which villagers participated included: a. Participatory recording of the land used by each household. Some other households registered for even waste land to cultivate in order to get support from the project. b. Participatory border definition, area measurement: every household was ready to work with the Working Group to define the exact border and demarcate their own land using poles. They themselves made sketch maps showing the allocated area. c. Participatory land use planning and approach of land allocation: Villagers were confused at first on making land use development plans. But they were excited in discussing crops and selection of agriculture varieties. They were very interested in planting trees as they were aware of the security of firewood and wood products with high economic value. General comments on participatory land allocation. The participatory land allocation process is of great importance to abolish the top-down approach. The approach is a feasible one. Villagers are willing to be involved in the LUP and FLA. Participatory land allocation can shorten the duration of allocation, save funds and ensure exact boundaries between households, thus avoiding later conflicts. 2. Advantages The LUP and FLA was supported by national and local professional organizations and authorities, especially the National Project and FIPI regarding technical aspects. Although it was a pilot project, the method of participatory land use planning had the participation of the people of Dong Tam commune. It yielded satisfactory results while following the Government land law. 3. Challenges and obstacles

9 Page 9 of 10 The Working Group consists of part-time members from different units, so technical assistance must be provided before implementing. All members have to schedule their time reasonably. The land allocation in the field was in rainy season; this caused problems in transportation. No priority was given to any group in land allocation, especially regarding minorities; the principle of land allocation allows the adjustment of one's previously used land. But in reality encroachment is common, if adjustment was applied, the compensation would cost too much. So the land allocation paid no attention to this problem, including persons from outside the commune who have occupied local land. Land allocation process requires frequent meetings with villagers, and the difficulty of communicating in the languages of the minorities causes problems during instruction on land allocation purpose, comments, filling in the applications, making land use planning, etc. This used a lot of the Working Group s time. 4. Experience gained a. The Working Group has completed their duty of participatory land allocation in the commune. This is thanks to the support of National Project and FIPI. It helped the District and Commune strengthen their staff capacity. And the villagers have had the chance to take part in their community activities. b. The training on land allocation should involve more participants from villages and brigades to make land allocation easier for the Working Group and more efficient. c. The expansion of land allocation in other communes should be carried out in the dry season to involve more villagers and to be more convenient to the Working Group. 5. Proposals Participatory land use planning and land allocation requires the involvement of district/commune authorities and villagers. This approach is feasible if villagers have the chance to participate in whatever activities are possible for them. The Working Group should provide a knowledge extension program for them. The method should state clearly which activities villagers should take part in. The working days of villagers spent in the process should be compensated accordingly. Forest land allocation should be combined with agriculture land allocation to be sustainable. The outsider encroachment problem should be solved; if not, the villagers in the project area have no land resources to be allocated to benefit the follow-up activities of the project such and extension and credit. The problem of the temporary or as yet unapproved residential status of some villagers should be should be solved quickly to allow them to invest in production without worry. 6. Problems to be discussed at the Workshop. Land use planning and land allocation in Dong tam Commune is a example of participatory methodology. To apply it on a large scale, the following proposals should be discussed: a. Land encroachment is widespread and complicated. How can FLA be carried out against this background? b. The State Enterprises manage a large area. They could not control the villagers' encroachment. Thus, these areas should be allocated to the villagers to implement the FAO Project. c. Is the participatory Land Use Planning and Forest Land Allocation appropriate to the province and the district or not? d. What is a reasonable expenditure for both these activities? CONCLUSION

10 Page 10 of 10 Owing to the assistance from experts of the National Project and Technical Experts of FIPI N02, the land use planning and forest land allocation in Dong Phu was completed successfully within 5 months. However, this was a trial approach, so shortcomings and problems could not be avoided. We highly appreciate comments and suggestions on the approach to be applied later. As it is an efficient and participatory approach, it not only meets the desires of the villagers but also is consistent with Government policy.