Consultancy Packages in "The Mekong Delta Coastal Habitat Conservation" (MDC) Project

International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Viet Nam
Address: 184 Nam Ky Khoi Nghia, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City

Subject: Invitation to Tender for Consultancy Packages in "The Mekong Delta Coastal Habitat Conservation" (MDC) Project

“The Mekong Delta Coastal Habitat Conservation" (MDC) Project, funded by ODA from the U.S. Government through USAID. In partnership with the Government of Vietnam, provincial governments, businesses, management boards, development partners, and fishing communities, the Mekong Delta Coastal Habitat Conservation project works to mitigate threats to coastal biodiversity and fisheries and enhance coastal resilience in the delta.

The Mekong Delta and its islands are home to 70 percent of Vietnam’s mangroves and 90 percent of its seagrass beds. Fed by the sediment and nutrients from the Mekong River, these habitats support Vietnam’s richest fishing grounds. However, these habitats are under growing threat. Intensive near-shore fishing has depleted fish stocks leading to the phenomenon of “fishing down the food chain,” with ecologically devastating effects. Unsustainable tourism development in Phu Quoc continues to eliminate coral reefs and seagrass beds.  Environmental pollutions caused by waste generated from the aquaculture (including plastic waste) has emerged as a significant concern for the region in recent times. The delta’s mangrove forests, which provide nursery habitat for sea bass, snapper, and other commercially important species, as well as crucial protection for coastal communities from storm surges, are declining, trapped between rising sea levels and sea dikes. Other climate change impacts such as prolonged droughts and higher ambient temperatures, made worse by the loss of mangroves and their micro-climate regulation, threaten shrimp stocks.

The project focuses on the delta’s lowest lying and most vulnerable coastlines along the East and West Seas, on the Phu Quoc Marine Protected Area, and on three small island clusters (Hai Tac, Ba Lua, Nam Du) in the West Sea. 

The project will demonstrate models of co-management of fisheries resources, involve the active participation of tourism companies in management of the Phu Quoc Marine Protected Area, and complete a series of studies to strengthen marine resources management, as well as support the Phu Quoc Business Platform to promote and coordinate business investment in coastal habitat and species conservation. The project will also support cooperation between local fishing communities and the provincial government to manage biodiversity conservation in the three island clusters.

The project will explore and test solutions to conserve and expand mangrove forests to increase fish nursery habitat and coastal biodiversity, including mangrove expansion behind the sea dikes.

IUCN Viet Nam is pleased to announce a public tender for the following consultancy packages:

1. Developing a toolset for evaluating the management effectiveness of Marine Protected Areas in Vietnam and applying it in assessing the current status at the Phu Quoc MPA
2. Developing a Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) scheme to establish a sustainable financial mechanism for marine conservation in Kien Giang province
3. Investigation, survey and additional assessment of the biodiversity, fisheries resources, socio-economic conditions, and environment to identify potential areas for establishing the other effective conservation measures (OECMs) in Kien Giang Province
4. Planting additional mangrove species suitable for environmental conditions (mangrove forest enrichment) and restoring highly degraded mangrove areas in Vinh Chau town, Soc Trang province
5. Assessing the Impact of Waste from Fishing, Aquaculture, and Processing Activities on Aquatic Ecosystems in Project Provinces and Proposing Mitigation Measures
6. Developing the Action Plan for the fisheries sector to implement the Kunming-Montreal Framework for biodiversity conservation by 2030, to integrate biodiversity protection goals into aquatic ecosystems for sustainable development of fisheries
7. Developing a project/plan for communication and education to raise awareness of environmental protection (including ocean plastic waste) in aquaculture production activities to coastal communities and managers

Submission deadline: 5:00 PM on September 8, 2024.

Submission method: Online to Mr. Andrew Wyatt at his email addess : [email protected]

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