International Organizations Support Vietnam’s Species Conservation Plan

The Sustainable Forest Management and Biodiversity Conservation (VFBC) project funded by the USAID, Re:wild organization, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) have co-held a workshop to support Vietnam to issue a plan for species conservation, state media reported.

The five-day workshop held in Hanoi last week aimed to develop a species conservation plan, a practical concept of release, relocation, and re-wilding, and a species re-release plan.

At the event, experts stressed the importance of rewilding in recovering and conserving the Vietnamese biodiversity, improving functions and services of the ecosystem, and promoting sustainable development.

Emphasizing that re-wilding is the only possible strategy to restore wildlife populations in Vietnam, Chief of Party at the USAID Biodiversity Conservation Nick Cox called on Vietnamese policy-makers and experts to partner with the USAID in this regard.

Mr. Barney Long, senior director of Conservation Strategies at Re:wild, suggested Vietnam establish conservation breeding facilities for near-extinct species in Vietnam to prevent potential extinction, thus reintroducing these species to Vietnam’s national parks in the future.

Besides, Dr. Vu Thanh Nam, deputy director of the Department of Special-use Forests and Protection Forests (under the Administration of Forestry), underlined the need to release an Action Plan on “Conservation of endangered, rare, and threatened animal species” in the coming time. He also proposed focusing on species with low populations, solitary populations, or critically endangered species, while actively relocating, re-releasing, and breeding priority species. (Nong Nghiep)