Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - In a bid to enhance theconservation and restoration of natural ecosystems and diverse wildlife withinthe country, the application of payment mechanisms for environmental servicesrendered by forests is being recommended for broader ecosystems.

Tran Thi Thu Ha, a member of the Vietnamese Academy of ForestSciences, which falls under the management of the Ministry of Agriculture andRural Development, said that these payment methodologies could effectivelystimulate and harness resources for this vital cause.

According to Ha, the efficacy of such payment schemes forecosystem services has been proven through their successful implementation inforest ecosystems across Vietnam.

The Forest Protection and Development Fund has been instrumentalin deploying the payment for forest environmental services model. This approachhas facilitated resource augmentation for the forestry sector, bolsteredrevenue streams for forests, lightened the fiscal burden on the State, enhancedthe effectiveness of forest protection and development efforts, and fosteredincome and livelihood avenues for communities residing in mountainous regions,explained Ha.

In light of these accomplishments, she emphasised the importanceof expanding this payment structure to encompass other ecosystem services. Thiswould drive revenue generation for the conservation and restoration ofecosystems and wildlife species that are currently inadequately supported bythe State's budget, she added.

Leveraging the knowledge gained from the application of paymentmechanisms for forest environmental services, Vietnam now sets its sight onextending this model to a variety of other ecosystems, such as marine andwetland environments, said Ha.

While the country has initiated similar programmes for theseecosystems, Ha highlighted that comprehensive payment mechanisms for theirservices remain absent.

To date, Vietnam has incorporated payments for certain ecosystemservices. These encompass fees for sightseeing within protected marine andwetland areas, a shared management model for aquatic resources, and thepromotion of eco-friendly aquaculture practices within select coastal regions.These efforts have been facilitated through collaborations with internationalorganisations and pertinent sectors, Ha explained.

However, she cautioned that the longevity of many such paymentmodels is threatened due to a lack of a clear legal framework.

Amid this backdrop, environmental specialists have emphasised thatthe existing State budget is insufficient to meet the pressing needs ofbiodiversity conservation. They argue that the advent of new financialstructures and policies is indispensable to draw additional resources. Theactive participation of local communities and the business sector is deemedcrucial to fortify investment in biodiversity preservation.

It needs mechanisms for certificates and credits for biodiversity,mechanisms for accessing carbon credit markets, mechanisms for debt swaps fornature conservation, biodiversity, green bonds, green credits, andestablishment of biodiversity funds such as funds for the conservation andrestoration of ecosystems.

Successful policy tool

According to Dao Xuan Lai, who heads the Climate Change andEnvironment Unit at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Vietnam,payment for ecosystem services is globally acclaimed as an effective policyinstrument for the management of natural resources, utilised with success inseveral countries worldwide.

Such programmes have been widely implemented across a diverserange of ecosystem services worldwide, encapsulating areas such as biodiversityconservation, watershed services, carbon sequestration, and landscapeaesthetics, stated Lai.

He further noted that the collective annual value of ecosystemservice payment programmes on a global scale is estimated to exceed astaggering 36 billion USD.

Lai expressed optimism that the launch of initiatives to promoteecosystem services could significantly aid the revival and restoration ofbiodiversity and ecosystems within Vietnam. He added that these initiativescould also provide tangible contributions towards the fulfilment ofbiodiversity targets that Vietnam has pledged to achieve under the Global BiodiversityFramework. This framework was launched at the 15th Conference (COP15) of theParties to the Convention on Biological Diversity.

Nguyen Dinh Tho, Director of the Institute of Strategy and Policyon Natural Resources and Environment, said that as per Clause 1, Article 138 ofthe Law on Environmental Protection 2020, payment for natural ecosystemservices implies that entities or individuals who utilise these services mustremunerate those who facilitate environmental and landscape values created bysuch natural ecosystems.

Tho explained that the funds thus accrued would be utilised tosafeguard, sustain, and enhance the natural ecosystems.

Services provided by natural ecosystems that qualify for suchpayments encompass the environmental aspects of the forest ecosystem inalignment with forestry law, wetland ecosystems utilised for tourism, leisure,and aquaculture; marine ecosystems serving similar purposes; mountainecosystems, caves, and geo-parks catering to tourism and entertainment; andnatural ecosystems which facilitate carbon sequestration and storage.

He further clarified that the law unequivocally prescribes themodus operandi of payment for these natural ecosystem services. Accordingly,entities and individuals exploiting these services are obligated to paydirectly to those providing these services, through a contractual agreementbetween the two parties.

For indirect payment scenarios, entities and individuals availingnatural ecosystem services are required to remunerate the service providers viaan entrusted model through the provincial environmental protection fund, or theVietnam Environmental Protection Fund in instances where a provincial fund isunavailable, he noted./.