Contribution of forest to rural households’ livelihood: evidences from Da river basin in the northwest mountainous region of Vietnam

Abstract

This paper examined how forest has contributed to rural households’ livelihood in Da river basin, the northwest mountainous region of Vietnam. The results revealed that forest predominantly contributes to the total income of rural residents in the region. Specifically, forestry land area, access to non-timber forest products, and payment for forest environmental services significantly affected household’s income in the region. However, rural people in the region have still faced several difficulties that constrain household’s livelihood. Of these difficulties, lack of financial capital, epidemic diseases in animal husbandry, limited access to market information and natural disaster are popular barriers to livelihood of people in the region. This paper also recommended several policies to improve rural livelihood in Da river basin. These includes: (i) integrating issues regarding payment for forest environmental services and REDD+ into socioeconomic development plan; (ii) improving awareness of local people on sustainable natural capital use through ecosystem conservation policy; (iii) providing preferential credit and training on agricultural production techniques; and (iv) encouraging market-oriented agriculture.