G2.1.2. Measures to reduce risks of displacement of greenhouse gas emission

Viet Nam has identified and integrated measures to address risks of displacement into the design and implementation of REDD+ in the following ways:

• Implementation of REDD+ at national scale;
• Analyzing the risks of displacement of emissions reductions/removals;
• Selecting and designing REDD+ policies and measures (PaMs) taking into account the risks of displacement, and putting in place other risk management measures;
• Designing and operating a National Forest Monitoring System (NFMS) to contribute to detecting and providing information on displacement. See SIS G.2.1.3 for more information.

Implementing REDD+ at national scale: The scope of Viet Nam’s National REDD+ Action Program (NRAP) (2017)[1] is national: “This Program is to be implemented across the country, with priority given to hot spots of deforestation and forest degradation, and regions affected by climate change, as well as areas having the greatest potential for forest carbon stock enhancement’.

Analysing risks of displacement:

Environmental and social co-benefits and risks of the NRAP (2017) PaMs were assessed, and co-benefit enhancement and risk mitigation measures identified.[2] Risks related to displacement included:

• Risks of conversion of natural non-forest habitats, negatively impacting biodiversity, ecosystem services, soil carbon stocks and ecological connectivity;
• Potential loss of productive assets, access or use rights to forests/forestry lands, increasing conflicts related to land tenure/land use and negatively impacting on livelihoods;
• Investments, incentives and potential higher markets prices in agriculture could make crop production more effective/attractive and contribute to deforestation over the long term or at scale; and
• Reforestation, and increased plantation cover and quality could lead to displacement of other land uses into forest areas

Some of the measures suggested to enhance the co-benefits of the NRAP PaMs and reduce risks related to displacement include the following: 1) Prioritising conservation and protection of natural forests in land use planning processes, and ensuring that decision-support tools for REDD+ incorporate biodiversity and ecosystem service values; 2) Strategic environmental assessment (SEA) for land use planning processes should be systematised and improved, to avoid/reduce conversion of other natural ecosystems (e.g. peatlands); 3) Integrated land use planning and associated processes (e.g. SEA) should integrate social parameters to avoid/mitigate access and use restrictions and loss of livelihoods; 4) Green financial mechanisms should include clear environmental safeguards such as procedures for screening proposed investments, and access to credit and other livelihood support should be improved; 5) Strengthened forest law enforcement and monitoring in hotspots of forest degradation and deforestation; and 6) Sustainable forest management practices and certification for plantations should be promoted through access/ improvements to advisory services.

The national guidelines for the development of Provincial REDD+ Action Plans (PRAPs)[3] provide direction on environmental and social benefit and risk assessment of the REDD+ policies and measures set out in these plans. Assessments of environmental and social benefits and risks of REDD+ PaMs in specific sub-national locations have also been carried out through the Strategic Environmental and Social Assessment (SESA), completed during the development of the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility Emission Reductions Program (FCPF ERP) and through the assessment of environmental and social considerations in the Sustainable Forest Management in the Northwest Watershed Area (SUSFORM-NOW) project funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

The FCPF ERP[4] has identified risks of displacement and design features to mitigate these risks. The key risks identified include: planned conversion of forest to agricultural land (e.g. for rubber plantations); unplanned conversion of forest to agriculture (e.g. through shifting cultivation); planned and unplanned conversion of natural forest to planted forest; planned and unplanned conversion of forest due to infrastructure development (e.g. hydropower dams); and unsustainable legal and illegal selective logging for commercial and subsistence purposes, both nationally and internationally (displacement to mainly Lao PDR and Cambodia). Mitigation strategies to address these risks include, among others: support for policies restricting conversion of forests; participatory land-use planning through the ERP’s Adaptive Collaborative Management Approach (ACMA); collaborative management approaches to reduce illegal logging; reducing the risk of both domestic and international displacement; and numerous initiatives by the Government of Viet Nam and neighboring countries relevant to reducing the risk of displacement.

Designing and selecting REDD+ PaMs to reduce risks of displacement and other management measures:

The design of Viet Nam National REDD+ Action Program (NRAP) (2017)[1] and the policies and measures (PaMs) within it, has included processes to help reduce the risks of displacement, including: assessment of the direct and indirect drivers of deforestation and degradation; linking PaMs to these drivers, with consideration of land tenure arrangements and potential impacts on livelihoods as well as the demand for and supply of forest and agricultural products; and incorporation of measures to reduce risks of displacement.

As part of the revision of the NRAP (2017), a study was carried out in 2016 to identify the various strategic considerations for REDD+ implementation.[5] This included analysis of priority underlying drivers and barriers to address, consideration of the social, political and economic factors influencing REDD+, and design of a preliminary set of PaMs, linking them clearly to the various drivers and barriers.

The NRAP (2017) includes a number of PaMs which can contribute to reducing displacement of greenhouse gas emissions from REDD+ activities in Viet Nam:

• Build capacity and support implementation of Viet Nam’s Timber Legality Assurance System (VNTLAS) in order to implement the EU Voluntary Partnership Agreement on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade of forest products (FLEGT).
• Support development and operation of the monitoring system and independent body to ensure compliance with VNTLAS.
• Measures to strengthen inter-agency forest law enforcement (such as cooperation with customs officials on illegal transboundary trade).
• Assess socio-economic dynamics in hotspots of deforestation and forest degradation and organize forest and forest land allocation, giving priority to individuals and households lacking land and productive land.
• International cooperation measures, including strengthening transboundary conservation in key conservation corridor landscapes, e.g. between provinces in Viet Nam and neighbouring countries.
• The FCPF -ERP monitoring parameters include: enhancement, stable forest, deforestation and degradation for the 6 provinces. In terms of other management measures, although there is no leakage deduction applied to the FCPF ERP, a leakage deduction is required by the Architecture for REDD+ Transactions REDD+ Environmental Excellence Standard (ART-TREES) to account for potential displacements of emissions to outside of the accounting area. In the case of the proposed South Central and Central Highlands ER Program, Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (MAE) data has been used to calculate a leakage deduction factor of10%.[6]

[1] NRAP (2017), Decision No 419/QD-TTg dated 5/4/2017, and Annex: Policies and Measures for REDD+ implementation for period of 2017 – 2020

[2] Summary of assessment of potential benefits and risks arising from the NRAP: https://sis.kiemlam.gov.vn/web/guest/library/-/document_library/iXuUrTYhhdKx/view_file/75422

[3] MARD Decision No. 5414/2015/QD-BNN-TCLN on the approval of guidelines for the development of Provincial REDD+ Action Plans

[4] FCPF ERP Document (2018): https://www.forestcarbonpartnership.org/system/files/documents/00_FINAL%20ER-PD%20Vietnam%205%20Jan%202018__0.pdf

[5] Richard McNally, Vu Tan Phuong, Nguyen The Chien, Pham Xuan Phuong, Nguyen Viet Dung (2016) Issues and options: support for the revision of Viet Nam’s National REDD+ Programme (NRAP), 2016-2020.

[6] Leakage Deduction Assessment” in TREES Registration Document, https://vnff.vn/en-us/leaf-program/mmr/registration-document;leakage risk was designated as “Medium” and a leakage deduction factor of 10% will be applied.