Decision 26/2002/QD-BKHCNMT approving the "Program to raise awareness of biodiversity 2001-2010" issued by the Minister of Science and Technology

DECISION

APPROVING THE PROGRAM ON RAISING BIO-DIVERSITY AWARENESS IN THE 2001-2010 PERIOD

THE MINISTER OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No.22/CP of May 22, 1993 on the tasks, powers and organizational structure of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment;
Pursuant to the Prime Minister’s Decision No.845/TTg of December 22, 1995 approving Vietnam’s Plan of Action on Bio-diversity;
Pursuant to the Government Office’s Official Dispatch No.6287/VPCP-KG of December 24, 2001 addressed to the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment, notifying the Prime Minister’s decision to promulgate a number of legal documents related to the environmental protection work;
At the proposals of the director of the Environment Department and the director of the Legal Department,

DECIDES:

Article 1.- To approve the Program on raising bio-diversity awareness in the 2001-2010 period.

Article 2.- To assign the Environment Department to coordinate with the concerned ministries, branches and localities in organizing the implementation of the Program.

Article 3.- This Decision takes effect 15 days after its signing.

Article 4.- The director of the Environment Department, the director of the Ministry�s Office, the director of the Legal Department, the director of the Planning Department, the director of the Finance and Accounting Department, and the concerned units shall have to implement this Decision.

PROGRAM

ON RAISING BIO-DIVERSITY AWARENESS IN THE 2001-2010 PERIOD
(Already approved in Decision No. 26/2002/QD-BKHCNMT of May 8, 2002 of the Minister of Science, Technology and Environment)

Bio-diversity constitutes the base of life, prosperity and sustainability of mankind as well as the earth as a whole. Nevertheless, human beings have been over-exploiting this natural resource, resulting in the degradation of ecological systems, the depletion of bio-diversity sources, even the destruction of that invaluable natural resources, in order to meet their ever-increasing demands. To protect the environment and to conserve bio-diversity in service of our life are the responsibility of everyone and have become burning issues in society, directly affecting every individual as well as the entire mankind community all over our planet. The environment- and bio-diversity conservation-related issues are of both State and social nature. The settlement of environmental protection and bio-diversity conservation-related issues at present and in future depends on the level of awareness of policymakers as well as the people’s knowledge, the attitudes and behaviors of people of all social strata.

In Vietnam, the Plan of Action on Bio-diversity, approved by the Prime Minister under Decision No.845/TTg in December 1995, asserted that it is a must to raise awareness of the value of bio-diversity in social life, supply necessary information on bio-diversity to the leadership at all levels, promote potential, train personnel and build a national bio-diversity database network.

Directive No.36/CT-TW of June 25, 1998 of the Political Bureau of the Vietnam Communist Party Central Committee on intensifying the environmental protection work in the period of national industrialization and modernization also confirmed that it is a must to "constantly educate, propagate and build the habit, lifestyle and mass movements to participate in protecting the environment."

The Program on raising bio-diversity awareness in the 2001-2010 period aims to concretize activities of raising bio-diversity awareness as defined in Vietnam’s Plan of Action on Bio-diversity and Directive No.36/CT-TW mentioned above.

I. BIO-DIVERSITY AWARENESS IN VIETNAM: ACTUAL SITUATION AND TENDENCY

1.1. The situation of bio-diversity awareness:

Since 1990, the issue of bio-diversity conservation has been given great attention to in Vietnam. Many legal documents and action programs related to bio-diversity conservation have been promulgated. The educational work to raise bio-diversity awareness and conservation activities have yielded certain results and progresses.

Bio-diversity conservation and research activities have been further and further promoted in central and local agencies, especially in the concerned functional agencies.

Many international organizations have paid attention and rendered both technical and financial assistance for the bio-diversity conservation work in Vietnam as well as to the raising of bio-diversity awareness.

However, there remain many limitations in bio-diversity awareness and conservation in Vietnam due to the following main reasons:

- The education to raise bio-diversity awareness, though being carried out by many agencies and organizations, have been neither synchronous nor regular and depended largely on external conditions (projects, potential and attention of branches and/or leadership).

- There is no coordinating agency at the national level in charge of education in bio diversity conservation, which results in inadequate organization and direction, thus entailing low educational effects and financial wastage.

- There is no concentrated direction and coordination among the functional State agencies so educational documents for raising bio-diversity awareness lack a legal basis, scientific quality and are not strictly managed.

- The education to raise bio-diversity awareness has not yet been extended or has only been extended at a limited level to the population in deep lying and remote areas where bio-diversity awareness raising is badly needed.

- Educational methods and forms are not diversified and suitable to various subjects, especially ethnic minority people in remote and deep-lying areas.

1.2. Difficulties and advantages in raising bio-diversity awareness in Vietnam till 2010

1.2.1. Difficulties:

- Poverty: Once poverty is not settled, the knowledge of people in remote and deep-lying areas remains slow to improve, thus causing difficulties to the education to raise awareness and change behaviors related to bio-diversity;

- Population growth pressure: population growth rate exerts a great pressure on bio-diversity awareness;

- Nomadic ways of cultivation and life and free migration have not yet been thoroughly checked; backward farming modes still exist, milpa areas expand unceasingly;

- The relatively rapid economic growth has generated economic, cultural and social gaps among various social strata;

The above-mentioned challenges and limitations in the education to raise bio-diversity awareness have led to the limited results of practical activities, including bio-diversity conservation programs and projects. Bio-diversity keeps degrading and bio-diversity-related law violations continue to occur, sometimes to a very serious extent.

1.2.2. Advantages:

- One of the most important advantages is the Party’s and State’s attention. It must be said that the Party’s and State’s attention to the bio-diversity conservation work has never been so profound as at present. Apart from important undertakings on the protection of natural resources and the environment, the Party and State have worked out specific plans and measures to this effect.

- The scientific research institutions and science administration agencies have shown a sense for and taken actions concentrating on conservation research through domestic scientific research schemes and international cooperation on bio-diversity and on groups of creatures in need of conservation.

- Economic growth and scientific and technical advances create an important opportunity for realization of the undertakings set by the State. They also serve as a crucial foundation for improving the life of people of all ethnic groups living throughout the country and create many more favorable conditions for the education work to raise bio-diversity awareness.

- The educational level of the community has been markedly raised; up to now 96.24% of communes and wards have achieved the primary education universalization target or eradicated illiteracy.

- The assistance of foreign countries and international organizations for Vietnam has increased constantly. There are more and more large projects employing good approaching methods, thus achieving higher and higher efficiency (noteworthy are integrated conservation and development projects - ICDPs).

- The population’s awareness of the value of bio-diversity has been increasingly improved. The community’s attitudes towards natural resources and the environment have become more and more responsible. The sense of conserving bio-diversity has been constantly heightened, which is reflected through economical measures taken in bio-diversity-exploiting and -using activities.

- The participation of the local communities and social organizations has been increasing more and more actively and effectively, especially the Peasants Association, the Women’s Union, the Elderly Association, youth unions and schools,

- The coordination among agencies, departments and branches from the central to local level has become closer and closer and the educational forms more and more diversified and effective.

In brief, bio-diversity awareness in Vietnam over the past years has been constantly raised with certain results recorded though still not up to requirements. Bio-diversity awareness has no yet become a matter of the entire society. This has posed the necessity to formulate and implement the Program on raising bio-diversity awareness in Vietnam. Despite of big challenges, with the above-said fundamental advantages as well as the determination of all agencies, organizations and individuals, the formulation and implementation of the Program on raising bio-diversity awareness in the 2001-2010 period will surely attain its objectives and requirements.

II. OBJECTIVES, PRINCIPLES, CONTENTS AND MEASURES OF THE PROGRAM ON RAISING BIO-DIVERSITY AWARENESS IN THE 2001-2010 PERIOD

2.1. Long-term goals:

To contribute to raising the entire society’s awareness and knowledge about the role of bio-diversity in the cause of sustainable socio-economic development, and bio-diversity protection, thus making bio-diversity conservation one of moral concepts of the time and a resource for social development.

To formulate standard relations between man and the nature and the environment so as to improve life quality and ensure sustainable development. These standards are demonstrated in the responsible attitude towards all living forms, including human beings who exploit and use natural resources and develop but do not deplete the gene source, cause harms to various species, ecological systems and bio-diversity resources of future generations.

2.2. Immediate objectives:

To educate and communicate to all members of the social community, aiming to:

- Raise the general understanding of bio-diversity, the important significance of bio-diversity and the present situation of bio-diversity in our country;

- Know how to use bio-diversity in a sustainable way; and

- Grasp the necessity to participate in the bio-diversity conservation cause, to adopt appropriate attitudes and actions so as to solve any issues related to bio-diversity conversation.

2.3. Principles:

The Program on raising bio-diversity awareness shall be formulated on the following principles:

- Compliance with the provisions in Article 13 of the Bio-diversity Convention on actions to raise the awareness of, and educate, the community.

- Compatibility with the socio-economic resources, the levels and customs of the Vietnamese people in the context of accelerated national industrialization and modernization;

- Serving the formulation and implementation of the line and undertakings on environmental protection in the period of accelerated national industrialization and modernization (Directive No. 36-CT/TW);

- Conformity with the National Environmental Protection Strategy in the 2001-2010 period;

- Accordance with relevant legal documents and international conventions with Vietnam has acceded to;

- Selective adoption of good experiences of international organizations and foreign countries;

- Attraction of a wide and active participation of the people and government officials at all levels;

- Combination of education and awareness raising with the taking of concrete actions related to bio-diversity conservation.

2.4. Contents and measures:

The Program on raising bio-diversity awareness shall have the following contents:

2.4.1. Providing knowledge, from simple to complicated, on the characteristics and present situation of bio-diversity in Vietnam and each region;

2.4.2. Creating conditions for people of all strata to understand the role of bio-diversity in daily-life;

2.4.3. Creating every favorable condition for organizing the education to raise bio-diversity awareness in every corner of the country;

2.4.4. Closely coordinating bio-diversity education inside and outside schools;

2.4.5. Training a contingent of personnel knowledgeable of bio-diversity for units in provinces, cities, urban and rural districts, communes and wards, who shall act as the core in the education to raise bio-diversity awareness suitable to each region;

2.4.6. Formulating the program and implementing the work of raising bio-diversity awareness suitable to various target groups: Regional population communities, enterprises exploiting and using bio-diversity products, staff working in conservation zones, people’s armed forces, cultural, information, education and training workers;

2.4.7. Socializing the work of raising bio-diversity awareness, mobilizing all individuals, all branches and all levels to cooperate and participate in bio-diversity management and conservation;

2.4.8. Training a contingent of specialists in bio-diversity research, management and education;

2.4.9. Raising the awareness of policymakers and State management officials at all levels.

2.5. Priority issues

2.5.1. Education in schools:

The environment education content, including bio-diversity, must be incorporated in the training programs of job-training schools, vocational intermediate schools and universities, especially teachers colleges at all levels, and boarding schools in mountainous provinces.

Due to its interdisciplinary nature, the bio-diversity content may be integrated into the contents of many other study subjects like biology, geography, chemistry, literature, citizenship education and extra-curricula activities. Pupils and students who have become aware of bio-diversity shall have new attitudes, behaviors and ethics regarding bio-diversity in their activities outside schools.

The education contents must enable pupils and students to become aware of and have correct attitudes and behaviors toward:

- The role of bio-diversity in ensuring daily-life needs of all people and population communities;

- The role of bio-diversity in ensuring a sound living environment;

- The close relationship between bio-diversity and social as well as economic development; and

- What to do to conserve bio-diversity.

In order to ease the learning by pupils and students, the teaching programs and contents must closely follow the practical situation of each locality, each region and each ethnic group. At primary schools, it is necessary to build school gardens in combination with organizing visits to museums, zoos, natural conservation parks, botanical gardens and production establishments so as to educate pupils at their early age.

To train a contingent of teachers capable of teaching bio-diversity at general education schools. To compile suitable teaching and learning materials, and guide books for bio-diversity teachers.

2.5.2. Education outside schools:

The education to raise bio-diversity awareness must be promoted outside schools with the subjects being the masses, population communities, particularly those who live mainly on exploiting biological natural resources. It is necessary to promote the cooperation between zoos, botanical gardens, national parks and conservation zones and universities and research institutes on raising bio-diversity awareness of the communities.

In a population community, it is necessary to distinguish the following target groups:

- Members of the People’s Councils, those who participate in leading the administrations at all levels;

- Those engaged in production activities, economic activities, exploiting, processing, rearing or cultivating, and trading in bio-products; peasants, fishermen, foresters, collectors of products from forests, sea, seashores, submerged land areas

- Armed forces;

- Tax officers, market controllers, customs officers, policemen and rangers;

- Consumers of bio-products;

- Those whose livelihood depends on the exploitation of biological natural resources;

The means of communication on knowledge about bio-diversity conservation are the mass media such as radio and television, newspapers, films, songs, panels, posters, leaflets, plays, talks and various folk art forms as well as drawing the photo contests A number of projects, such as the projects on management of the buffer zones of nature conservation zones and national parks, have applied relatively attractive forms of education and communication on bio-diversity protection, which should be promoted and expanded.

The education and communication on bio-diversity protection must be carried out continuously and regularly under long-term plans so that its contents penetrate deeply into the mind of every one, gradually becoming some sort of ethic, a fine lifestyle, and a new cultural trait of the nation.

III. ORGANIZATION OF IMPLEMENTATION

3.1. Specific requirements:

To conserve bio-diversity is the responsibility of the entire society; one of good strategic measures is to promote bio-diversity education for all people, communities, enterprises, decision-makers and officials of State management agencies at all levels. To promote education in bio-diversity awareness at all educational levels.

The Program on raising bio-diversity awareness shall help every community member:

- Be aware of the bio-diversity situation and its issues in each locality and in Vietnam as a whole.

- Acquire basic knowledge about bio-diversity conservation and suitable skills for participating in improving and restoring bio-diversity in Vietnam.

- Adopt proper attitudes and actions in order to contribute to effectively settling bio-diversity conservation issues and prevent problems from occurring in future.

3.2. Implementation modes:

The contents and methods of raising bio-diversity awareness must be simple, easy to understand and learn, suitable to each subject and each domain in each territorial region.

- Widely popularizing the Program on raising bio-diversity awareness to the ministries, branches, localities and social organizations in the country, after it is approved by the State;

- Propagating the Program on raising bio-diversity awareness to the public on the mass media;

- Integrating the programs on raising bio-diversity awareness with other environment communication programs;

- Universalizing knowledge about the importance of bio-diversity to the socio-economic development, to the health and prosperity of the community, necessary technical measures to serve bio-diversity conservation.

- Selectively adopting and widely applying indigenous knowledge to the preservation of traditional cultural traits and practices of the ethnic groups, localities, and to bio-diversity conservation;

- Mobilizing and attracting the participation of people of all strata and administrations at all levels and social organizations in the bio-diversity conservation work;

- Respecting and bringing into full play all initiatives of individuals and collectives in the work of education and communication on bio-diversity conservation in the course of implementing the contents of the Program on raising bio-diversity awareness.

3.3. Implementation forms:

a) Formulation of information and propagation programs together with messages for communication on bio-diversity awareness.

b) Education to raise knowledge and awareness for officials.

c) Incorporation of the content of bio-diversity protection into the formal curricula or integration with other study subjects in the teaching programs of schools of all educational levels and job-training schools.

d) Organization of national, regional and international seminars on education to raise the community’s awareness so as to share experiences in the field of bio-diversity.

e) Compilation of teaching materials and reference materials on bio-diversity.

f) Re-printing with editions and additions the Plan of Action on Bio-diversity; compilation and publication of a general and simple book on the Plan of Action on Bio-diversity

g) Formulation of a national plan on training to enhance Vietnam’s capacity to implement the national Plan of Action on Bio-diversity as well as the provisions of relevant international conventions which Vietnam has acceded to.

h) Launching of movements to raise the role of mass organizations such as Vietnam Confederation of Labor, the Youth Union, the Women’s Union, the Peasants Association, the War Veterans Association, voluntary organizations and religious organizations to join in conserving and managing bio-diversity.

3.4. Priority actions:

The Program on raising bio-diversity awareness shall consist of priority action programs identified on the basis of selecting urgent questions to be solvable in the period of accelerated national industrialization and modernization.

3.4.1. Raising of bio-diversity awareness of officials in the administrations at all levels:

- Training a contingent of personnel engaged in the propagation and education in bio-diversity awareness and nature conservation.

- Sharing experiences among organizations at home and abroad, which have made many achievements in the field of nature conservation and bio-diversity protection.

- Putting information on the community’s awareness and behaviors regarding bio-diversity into the country’s annual reports on the present situation of the environment.

3.4.2. Education to raise bio-diversity awareness of the people:

- Propagating and educating in bio-diversity awareness on the mass media;

- Summing up the models of economic development in association with bio-diversity conservation, formulating and implementing community-based conservation programs.

3.4.3. Promotion of bio-diversity awareness education at schools:

- Coordinating with the environment education projects VIE/98/018 in incorporating the content of education to raise bio-diversity awareness into all educational levels;

- Organizing extra-curricular field visits for pupils and students to learn and raise their bio-diversity awareness;

- Organizing training courses on bio-diversity conservation policies, laws, planning and management for officials of conservation zones, State management officials engaged in bio-diversity conservation;

- Organizing a bio-diversity forum for dialogues between mass organizations and State management agencies so as to raise the community’s awareness and responsibility towards the conservation of biological resources.

3.5. Finance, sources and diversification of investment to raise bio-diversity awareness

In order to effectively materialize the objectives, contents and programs of action in the priority order stated in the Program on raising bio-diversity awareness for Vietnam in the 2001-2010 period, an estimated average annual funding of around VND 20 billion is required.

Part of the budget reserved for the Program shall come from the State budget, which shall be annually considered and allocated by the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment in coordination with the Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance. The remainder should be mobilized from those subjects benefiting from biological resources, for example, those subjects using them not for their livelihood, business branches, industries, organizations at home and abroad, the population communities..., assorted biological resource taxes for lawful exploitation activities for commercial purpose.

To attract international financial assistance from donors, ODA sources, the Global Environment Facility, multilateral as well as bilateral international cooperation. To strengthen the mechanism of coordination through such donors as the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), the World Bank (WB), the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the International Union for Nature Conservation (IUCN), the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), and bio-diversity projects.

3.6. Specific implementation:

In the spirit of the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 845/TTg of December 22, 1995 approving Vietnam’s Plan of Action on Bio-diversity:

- The Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment shall coordinate with the provincial/municipal Science, Technology and Environment Services, the Ministry of Education and Training, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ministry of Aquatic Resources as well as the concerned ministries, branches and localities, and mass organizations in jointly organizing the implementation of Vietnam’s Program on raising bio-diversity awareness in each period in order to achieve the set objectives with specific targets and plans.

- Annually, the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment shall rely on the practical situation to set forth targets to be achieved for each period of implementation of the Program and harmonize its action plans with the national socio-economic development plans.

3.7. Supervision and evaluation of program implementation

Annually the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment shall consider and evaluate the program implementation according to the approved objectives and contents, which can be divided into different implementation phases, as well as evaluate the Program according to three stages: 2001-2005, 2006-2008 and 2009-2010.

Each of the concerned ministries, branches and localities must send to the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment annual reports on evaluation of the results of the implementation of projects within the framework of the Program, together with proposed adjustments of and/or additions to the implementation plans.

APPENDIX 1

LIST OF PRIORITY PROGRAMS REGARDING THE METHOD OF COMPILING MATERIALS FOR ACTIONS TO RAISE BIO-DIVERSITY AWARENESS (*)

APPENDIX 2

LIST OF PROJECTS ON PRIORITY ACTION TO RAISE BIO-DIVERSITY
AWARENESS AND THEIR OUTLINES

(*) Proposed according to the programs priority contents

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