NEWSLETTER FA O I N V I E T N A M JULY - OCTOBER 2014 WORLD FOOD DAY Celebration in Viet Nam M inistry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), FAO and UN Women in Viet Nam joined hands to celebrate the World Food Day 2014 with northern Quang Ninh province’s Hong Phong Commune hosting this year’s event. The commune, where many households farm together and women play an important role, was selected as it embodied this year’s theme ”Family Farming: Feeding the World, Caring for the Earth”. Mr. Jong Ha Bae, FAO Representative in Viet Nam, said female farmers have contributed significantly to the country’s food security and have worked hard to adapt farming techniques to better handle climate change in Viet Nam. “As you know, female farmers in Viet Nam have contributed significantly to family farming and food security in the country, as well as worked hard to adapt new farming techniques in response to climate change.” he said. The event was supported by the Quang Ninh People’s Committee and also attended by UN Women Country Representative Ms. Shoko Ishikawa, President of Viet Nam Women’s Union, MARD Vice Minister, Leaders of Quang Ninh Province and reporters from national and local media. This year’s theme is especially important to a country like Viet Nam, as family farmers and especially women are an important part of the solution to challenges many face - to sustainably increase food production and end hunger. As the country is rapidly approaching the Millennium Development Goals deadline, it must forge a sustainable and hunger-free future with contributions from all family farmers. A highlight of the event was the announcement of the winners of a national FAO-supported story competition on the “The Role of Women on Family Farming”. First prize went to Tran Thi Minh, from Fansipan Magazine, Arts and Literature Association of Lao Cai province, for her story ‘Ly A Sui and his wife”, with Pham Thi Que Ha from Quang Nam Province’s Arts and Literature Association grabbing second prize with ”Even rocks are turned into rice”. People’s Army Gia Lai province correspondent Le Quang Hoi came third with “The matriarch who overcomes the curse”. Consolation prizes went to a student from Ho Chi Minh City University of Social Sciences and Humanities and a Gia Lai province secondary school teacher. The competition, also backed by UN Women in Viet Nam for the first time, is part of the year-long UN campaign “Empowering Women – Empowering Humanity”. National Story Competition winners
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NEWSLETTERF A O I N V I E T N A M
JULY - OCTOBER 2 014
WORLD FOOD DAY
Celebration in Viet Nam
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), FAO and UN Women in Viet Nam joined hands to celebrate the World Food Day 2014 with
northern Quang Ninh province’s Hong Phong Commune hosting this year’s event. The commune, where many households farm together and women play an important role, was selected as it embodied this year’s theme ”Family Farming: Feeding the World, Caring for the Earth”.
Mr. Jong Ha Bae, FAO Representative in Viet Nam, said female farmers have contributed significantly to the country’s food security and have worked hard to adapt farming techniques to better handle climate change in Viet Nam. “As you know, female farmers in Viet Nam have contributed significantly to family farming and food security in the country, as well as worked hard to adapt
new farming techniques in response to climate change.” he said.
The event was supported by the Quang Ninh People’s Committee and also attended by UN Women Country Representative Ms. Shoko Ishikawa, President of Viet Nam Women’s Union, MARD Vice Minister, Leaders of Quang Ninh Province and reporters from national and local media. This year’s theme is especially important to a country like Viet Nam, as family farmers and especially women are an important part of the solution to challenges many face - to sustainably increase food production and end hunger.
As the country is rapidly approaching the Millennium Development Goals deadline, it must forge a sustainable and hunger-free future with contributions from all family farmers.
A highlight of the event was the announcement of the winners of a national FAO-supported story competition on the “The Role of Women on Family Farming”.
First prize went to Tran Thi Minh, from Fansipan Magazine, Arts and Literature Association of Lao Cai province, for her story ‘Ly A Sui and his wife”, with Pham Thi Que Ha from Quang Nam Province’s Arts and
Literature Association grabbing second prize with ”Even rocks are turned into rice”. People’s Army Gia Lai province correspondent Le Quang Hoi came third with “The matriarch who overcomes the curse”.
Consolation prizes went to a student from Ho Chi Minh City University of Social Sciences and Humanities and a Gia Lai province secondary school teacher.
The competition, also backed by UN Women in Viet Nam for the first time, is part of the year-long UN campaign “Empowering Women – Empowering Humanity”.
National Story Competition winners
FAO Launches Key Global Partnership in Viet Nam
FAO on 28 August introduced an important global partnership to Viet Nam to ensure smallholders, communities and women's organizations have
improved livelihoods and increased decision-making over forest and farm landscapes.
The Forest and Farm Facility was launched at a Ha Noi workshop, in collaboration with the Viet Nam Farmer's Union, which brought together a wide range of stakeholders, including the Government, forest and farm producers, NGOs and civil society.
Mr. Patrick Durst, FAO Asia-Pacific Senior Forestry Officer, said: "Being one of the first countries to establish
rural poverty reduction as a key objective for forest management, Viet Nam has demonstrated impressive leadership in forestry."
The Forest and Farm Facility is a multi-donor programme, hosted by FAO, with a management team including FAO, International Union for the Conservation of Nature and the International Institute for Environment and Development. Its key aims include engagement of forest producers in policy dialogue, support local communities to invest in sustainable forest and farm management with effective market integration as well as champion the needs and rights of smallholders, women, communities and indigenous peoples.
“The Forest and Farm Facility in Viet Nam will hopefully be a role model to the world in leading the use of forest resources and forestry as a key mechanism for reducing rural poverty," said Mr. Durst.
It was launched globally in September 2012, with six paired nations piloting in country activities in 2013. Viet Nam is one of four countries to join in 2014.
Ha Noi Consultative Meeting for
A key role was played by FAO in support of a regional meeting in Ha Noi that contributed to the successful recent launch of the Alliance for
Climate-Smart Agriculture.
The consultative meeting in June provided an opportunity for Asia-Pacific stakeholders to discuss complex and interlinked challenges requiring major shifts in agriculture and rural development in the region.
Dr. Hiroyuki Konuma, FAO Asia-Pacific Regional Representative, said: “This conference gives Asia a unique opportunity to identify common needs and objectives and create coordinated actions as has been done in other continents”.
In particular, the meeting highlighted how the role of the private sector and its investment could be strengthened in mainstreaming Climate-Smart Agriculture.
Such key messages and conclusions were important inputs into the Global Consultative Meeting in The Hague in July and the Global Alliance for Climate-Smart Agriculture launched in New York at the United Nations Secretary General’s Climate Summit in September 2014.
The launch of the alliance is the first major step towards a set of enhanced and coordinated global action for Climate-Smart Agriculture.
CLIMATE-SMART AGRICULTURE
TECHNICAL TRAINING TO PREVENT AND CONTROL RABIES
The ECTAD programme in Viet Nam was busy in September with two rabies training courses in Phu Tho and Thai Nguyen
provinces to enhance animal and public health experts’ local capacity and ensure effective rabies prevention and control in the field. The “training of trainers” courses brought provincial, district and commune animal and public health officers together under the One Health context.
The workshop’s objectives were to equip field professionals with dog capture and vaccination skills and enhance the technical knowledge to better explain rabies prevention and control information to dog owners and local communities.
Trainers emphasized the importance of vaccinating dogs to reduce human rabies cases. Training also worked towards the establishment of an integrated bite case management programme to improve communication and
coordination between the animal and the public health sectors.
ECTAD Viet Nam invited ECTAD Indonesia and the Government Animal Health and Livestock Services in Bali to share success stories and lessons learned from their successful rabies eradication programme. Vietnamese participants also had a chance to practice dog catching and vaccination in the field with the Indonesian“A-team”, the best Indonesian dog catchers and vaccinators.
According to FAO’s rabies assessment mission in 2013, Viet Nam has a high number of unvaccinated dogs and low public awareness about rabies prevention and the importance of responsible dog ownership. ECTAD Viet Nam is continuing to provide technical and financial support to the Government to address these issues.
FAO took the lead in supporting Viet Nam to host the 5th UN-REDD Regional Lessons Learned Workshop for Asia-Pacific during 20-22 October in Ha Noi.
National Forest Monitoring Systems (NFMS) and Reference Levels (RELs) for REDD+ were the focus of the workshop, hosted in collaboration with the Viet Nam Administration of Forestry (VNFOREST).
The workshop provided a platform for meaningful information exchanges and joint learning across the region, with FAO and experts from other institutions sharing international guidance and technological advice
on NFMS and RELs. Building on momentum from the 4th UN-REDD Lessons Learned Workshop for Asia-Pacific held in Bangkok last year, FAO Representative in Viet Nam Mr. Jong Ha Bae said: “FAO has taken the lead in organizing these two workshops, owing to our key role within the UN-REDD Programme in supporting country efforts to improve and strengthen forest monitoring”.
The Ha Noi workshop was part of a series of regional events for UN-REDD partner countries in Asia-Pacific to build consistency in their approaches, share successes and learn how to handle challenges in preparing for REDD+.
VIET NAM HOSTS 5TH UN-REDD
REGIONAL LESSONS LEARNED
WORKSHOP
UPCOMING EVENT
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in Viet NamNo 3 Nguyen Gia Thieu Street, Hoan Kiem District, Ha Noi, Viet NamWebsite: http://www.fao.org/vietnam - Email : [email protected]: (84 4) 39424208/39424694 - Fax: (84 4) 39423257
The FAO team has begun assisting a broader UN initiative to formulate a National Action Plan for the Zero Hunger Challenge (ZHC), which will provide a basis for eradicating hunger and malnutrition in Viet Nam by 2025.
The Government has sought UN’s support and FAO’s technical advice to develop the action plan, building on the leadership of the UN Resident Coordinator, and the work of the FAO-chaired UN Regional Thematic Working Group on Poverty and Hunger. The working group prepared a Regional Guiding Framework for Achieving Zero Hunger in Asia-Pacific through extensive multi-stakeholder consultations.
The ZHC was launched by the United Nations Secretary-General at the Rio+20 Conference on Sustainable Development in Brazil in June, 2012.
