Diverse livelihoods beneath the canopy of Than Sa - Phuong Hoang Forest

The Than Sa - Phuong Hoang Nature Reserve, which covers an area of 18,700 hectares, is located within the administrative boundaries of 8 communes and towns in Vo Nhai District, Thai Nguyen province. With the aim of ensuring the sustainable development of forest resources and providing livelihoods for the local communities, the Special-Use Forest Management Board, a provincial forest protection unit located in Thai Nguyen province, has been implementing various community support activities in the buffer zone of the Nature Reserve to effectively carry out coordinated forest management, conservation, and biodiversity preservation efforts.

Accordingly, the Forest Management Board has supported community members in establishing sustainable livelihoods beneath the canopy of the Than Sa - Phuong Hoang Nature Reserve, thereby increasing income levels and improving their quality of life. Their support has encouraged local participation in forest protection efforts.

Most notably, in 2023, the Forest Management Board deployed a model for cultivating medicinal plants in Thuong Nung commune, Vo Nhai district, which is located within the buffer zone of the Than Sa - Phuong Hoang Nature Reserve. Subsequently, twelve households have participated in the cultivation model, and received Ba Kich and Khoi Tia plant varieties for cultivation on an area of 3.1 hectares.

Furthermore, the Provincial Special-Use Forest Management Board has provided wild medicinal plant seedlings, such as "ba kich" and "cat sam," to local residents in the communes of Sang Moc, Cuc Duong, Than Sa, and Phu Thuong, for cultivation on a total area of 12 hectares since 2020.

In accordance with the policy of community investment support within the buffer zone of the Than Sa - Phuong Hoang Nature Reserve, the Thai Nguyen Provincial Special-Use Forest Management Board  has provided assistance to 56 local hamlets and communities in 8 communes and town located within the Conservation Area since 2018. Accordingly, the total support capital has reached over 2.2 billion VND.

Each hamlet and community has received an annual support capital of 40 million VND to promote production with agricultural and forest extension activites, seedlings, livestock, small-scale agricultural and forestry processing equipment. Additionally, beneficiaries also receive support for building materials to use in the constructon of communal public facilities such as clean water, electricity, lighting, communication, transportation, cultural houses, etc. These activities not only contribute to the promotion of socio-economic development but also enhance the community's awareness, rights, and responsibilities in the mission of forest protection and development.

Regarding nature conservation, the Provincial Special-Use Forest Management Board recently collaborated with the Thai Nguyen province's Department of Forest Protection to release one wild cat, one large slow loris, one long-tailed monkey, and five endangered snake species into the Than Sa - Phuong Hoang Special-Use Forest.

The Thanh Sa - Phuong Hoang Nature Reserve is characterized by a unique and typical flora and fauna system, representing the last of its kind in the northeastern region of Vietnam.

Thai Nguyen Provincial Special-Use Forest Management Board was established in June 2020 through the merger of the Thanh Sa - Phuong Hoang Nature Reserve Management Board and the Ho Nui Coc Environmental Protection Forest Management Board.

The Thanh Sa - Phuong Hoang Nature Reserve covers an area of nearly 20,000 hectares of special-use forest, spanning across 8 communes and the town in Vo Nhai District. This region boasts a natural ecosystem with a variety of rare and endangered animal and plant species. It is home to a wide range of ethnic minority households, with limited legal knowledge and education, who rely heavily on the forest for their livelihoods.

In adherence to forest protection and development policies that align with sustainable poverty reduction and support for ethnic minority communities, as well as the enhancement of forest management and conservation activities at the grassroots level with a focus on community involvement, the Thai Nguyen Provincial Special-Use Forest Management Board facilitated the allocation of 14,297 hectares of special-use forest to 49 local communities and 50 households across 7 communes and 1 town in 2020. Additionally, 957 hectares of protection forest were assigned to the protection of 2 communities and 106 households. The total annual support budget was estimated at 6 billion VND.