Ho Chi Minh City, 24th November 2011
With about 3,260 km coastline and more than 25 million people (31% population) living along the coastline, coastal zones of Vietnam closely relate and greatly affect socio-economic development, environment and national security of our country. However, coastal zones are also the most sensitive and vulnerable areas, being exposed to high pressures from human activities, domestic, agricultural and industrial wastes, pollution from shipping, as well as from natural processes such as natural disasters, erosion, storms and floods, especially in the context of sea level rise and global climate change. According to World Bank (2007), Vietnam is one of the top five countries which will be seriously affected by sea level rise, in which the Mekong Delta is one of the three deltas in the world which will be highly vulnerable by impacts of climate change. The Mekong Delta plays an important role as Vietnam’s “rice bowl” but also has to meet the challenge between economic growth and poverty reduction and rising concerns over environmental and social impacts. The situation calls for a holistic approach and a strategy for integrated management of land, water and living resources that promotes conservation and sustainable development.
ICAM is an approach in coastal resource management which has been introduced and started to be efficiently applied in Vietnam. ICAM is an environmental and resource management system with an integrated approach, through collaboration and coordination of multi-disciplinary, multi-targets, with full participant of all stakeholders in order to solve complex problems of coastal zones. For example, in the case of Soc Trang, mangrove forest creates a narrow belt along most the coastline of the province. We cannot manage this forest belt separately, without taking into account local people livelihood’s activities as well as the accretion and erosion along the coast.
The fundamental goal of Integrated Coastal Area Management (ICAM) is to maintain, restore or improve the quality of coastal zone ecosystems and the societies they support. General trend in current ICAM is decentralization and the emphasis on the participation of local community in management. The conventional top-down management is showing more and more its weak points as it does not consider appropriately for local resource-users in coastal areas. The lack of support and interest of stakeholders have led to lack of efficiency in management. Therefore, empowering of management roles for decision-makers and coordination between government and local communities in resource management is an efficient approach for sustainable resource development and environmental protection in coastal areas.
National cooperation is required to achieve ecologically sustainable development through ICAM. Due to the complexity of coastal areas, their sensitivity and vulnerability, there is no single universal solution applicable to the entire coast. Local characteristics and requirements enable and lead to a holistic and adapted approach, which must include many different processes, stakeholders and interests. Decisions must be made based on an interdisciplinary and cross-border consensus.
We hope that this workshop can create a meaningful forum, where we can share together, exchange ideas and learn from international experiences so that we can helpfully contribute to integrated coastal zone management in Vietnam, particularly in Mekong Delta.
Contents
1. An International Perspective on Integrated Coastal Area Management - Prof. Tim Smith
2. Integrated Coastal Area Management – Experiences and lessons learnt from Germany - Bianca Schlegel
3. Development and Implementation of Integrated Coastal Area Management in the South-East Asian Region - Dr. Stefan Groenewold
4. Experience from Integrated Coastal Zone Management in the Philippines - Mr. Nguyen Duc Hoang
5. Strategy on Integrated Coastal Management in Vietnam - Dr. Nguyen Chu Hoi
6. Concept of ICAM in Soc Trang Province - Dr. Klaus Schmitt
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