Poverty Reduction Strategies and Environment in Viet Nam

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Poverty Reduction Strategies and Environment in
Viet Nam

• Dr Truong Manh Tien
• Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment

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Structure of the presentation

• Summary conclusions
• Social economic development planning in Viet Nam
• The interim-PRSP
• The CPRGS Millennium Development Goals
• Three key strategies compared
• Further social economic development planning
• Advocacy and learning on poverty-environment
  links
• Introduction to the Viet Nam Poverty -
  Environment Initiative

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1. Summary conclusions

• Formulation of Poverty Reduction Strategies
  important for strengthened cooperation between
  Ministries and partnership with donors
• Mutual trust and openness increased on all sides
• Many opportunities for inclusion of environmental
  concerns in social-economic development
  strategies and plans
• Viet Nam Development Goals, based on the
  Millennium Development Goals were important
• Advocacy works differently in Viet Nam
• Many sustainable development goals, targets and
  indicators, but more is needed and happening

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2. Social economic development planning in Viet
Nam

• Following various consultations and studies
• Social Economic Development Strategy (SEDS)
  2001-2010.
• Social Economic Development Plan 2001-2005
• And, for example
• Hunger Eradication and Poverty Reduction Strategy
  2001-2010
• National Strategy for Environmental Protection
  (NSEP) until 2010 and vision toward 2020
• Strategic Orientation for Sustainable Development
  (Viet Nam Agenda21)

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3. The interim-PRSP

• Over the period of preparing the SEDS 2001-2010
  the Government and donors worked on the
  interim-PRSP (final in 2001).
• Three new things
• The 1993 1998 Viet Nam Household Living
  Standard surveys showed the trends of growth and
  poverty reduction (done with technical
  assistance)
• Participatory Poverty Assessments (PPAs) in 1999
  in 4 provinces helped understanding the causes of
  poverty and local perceptions of poverty (a
  collaborative effort)
• Successful informal discussions between officials
  from several Ministries and the international
  community

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4. The CPRGS Millennium Development Goals

• The Government created an Inter Ministerial
  Working Group (IMWG) for formulating a full
  PRSP, the Comprehensive Poverty Reduction and
  Growth Strategy (CPRGS) in 2001
• In 2001 8 joint working groups Vietnamised the
  Millennium Development Goals and Targets into
  VDGs, which became central to the CPRGS. This
  included a paper on environmental goals, some of
  which have clear links to poverty reduction.
• There were more (informal) meetings with the
  international community
• There were local consultations on the draft CPRGS
  in early 2002, following PPA methodology (again,
  a collaborative effort)

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4. The CPRGS Millennium Development Goals
(continued)

• The CPRGS was approved in 2002 and has a lifespan
  of three years. It is the basis for further
  drawing rights of on loan facilities of the World
  Bank and IMF.
• Endorsement by other donors the CPRGS has
  encouraged other aid.
• Positive reception by the international business
  community the CPRGS is a key factor in rising
  Foreign Direct Investment
• The Prime Ministers preface to the CPRGS shows
  that this strategy is seen as an action plan
• Implementation is overseen by the IMWG
• A CPRGS progress report in 2003 was based on
  analysis of the third survey of household
  expenditure data (2002) and PPAs in 12 provinces

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4. The CPRGS Millennium Development Goals
(continued)

• The CPRGS goals, targets and indicators on
  poverty reduction environment nexus are about
  .
• Forestry, e.g. for livelihoods of ethnic
  minorities
• Urban housing, for prevention of slums
• Urban waste water, with impact on health
• Solid waste, to reduce health risks
• Water and air pollution, to reduce health risks
• Water supply and environmental sanitation
• Individual and collective land-use rights of
  ethnic minorities, for food security and
  livelihoods
• Names of husband and wife on land-use
  certificates
• Access to electricity and irrigation water for
  poor communes, for livelihoods and food security

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5. Three key strategies compared

• CPRGS NSEP Viet Nam Agenda 21
• Highly consistent no contradictions.
• People are central in all three
• CPRGS is about growth poverty is broader
• NSEP Viet Nam Agenda 21
• Focus on environmental sustainability
• Propose economic instruments for incentives to
  protect the environment and economic growth
• Promote investments (e.g. in water supply) and
  technologies (e.g. sustainable agriculture) as
  the main ways to improve environmental
  sustainability and reduce poverty
• The CPRGS stresses popular participation in ME
  and enhancing grassroots democracy the others
  talk of mobilisation of the community, but do
  not links to legislation on grassroots democracy

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6. Further social economic development planning

• Key aspects of the i-PRSP and CPRGS processes are
  being adopted in the formulation of the national
  Social Economic Development Plan 2006-2010
  cooperation between Ministries, partnership with
  donors, local consultations
• The main goals, targets and indicators in the
  CPRGS were ambitious and are likely to be
  maintained, including environment-poverty goals
• Important initiatives announced in the Viet Nam
  Agenda21 and NSEP are also expected to be
  reflected, including developing environmentally
  friendly economic instruments and new
  environmental legislation

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7. Advocacy and learning on poverty-environment
links

• Advocacy is somewhat different in Viet Nam
• Popular consultation for strategy formulation and
  development planning through the Communist Party
  and different levels of government, with social
  (mass) organisations
• Public debate is increasingly enabled by the
  media
• Members of the National Assembly and (locally)
  the Peoples Councils represent citizens
• Knowledgeable people influence policy processes
  through informal networks
• VN-NGOs are emerging and were at the Earth Summit
  in 2002, but do not yet relate much to policy
  processes.

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7. Advocacy and learning on poverty-environment
links (continued)

• Learning and awareness raising is key
• Amongst the public and officials
• Concrete Poverty-Environment links must serve as
  the basis for learning and awareness raising
  through applied research of past successes,
  lessons and models are being formulated
• Most models focus on sustainable primary
  production and livelihood development, including
  an eco-village model and innovations on the
  VAC farming model (garden, pond, livestock).

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8. Introduction to the Viet Nam Poverty -
Environment Initiative

• UNDP MoNRE a Poverty-Environment Project
• US3.45million, with PEI and other funds,
  US250,000 in-kind from the GoVN
• From late 2004, for 4 years
• Project aim
• to strengthen Government capacity to integrate
  environment and poverty reduction goals into
  policy frameworks for sustainable development.

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8. Introduction to the Viet Nam Poverty -
Environment Initiative (continued)

• Component 1
• Policy Analysis, Monitoring and Advocacy
• Output 1.1 Improved knowledge and awareness
  within government and civil society of barriers,
  capacities and opportunities for natural resource
  use and environmental protection to contribute to
  national goals, targets and strategies for
  poverty reduction and sustainable development.
• Output 1.2 Strengthened institutional capacity
  to monitor and report on poverty-environment
  indicators and outcomes, and use those data
  effectively.

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8. Introduction to the Viet Nam Poverty -
Environment Initiative (continued)

• Component 2
• Policy Development and Implementation
• Output 2.1 Strengthened institutional mechanisms
  and capacity to integrate poverty reduction and
  environmental concerns into development policy
  and planning frameworks (i) across MONRE, MPI
  and sector Ministries (ii) between MONRE and
  DONREs and (iii) across Provincial departments.
• Output 2.2 Strengthened capacity in MONRE to set
  strategic priorities and develop policy and legal
  instruments that encourage environmental
  protection and natural resource use and support
  poverty reduction and improved equality.

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8. Introduction to the Viet Nam Poverty -
Environment Initiative (continued)

• Component 3
• Sector Coordination and Partnerships
• Output 3.1 Strengthened institutional capacity
  of MONRE to coordinate donor support within a
  programmatic framework, regarding natural
  resource use and environmental protection, and
  links to poverty reduction.