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In Viet Nam, the policies, laws and regulations related to tenure of land and forests are not consistent across the country and vary considerably between provinces. Furthermore, the process of FA/FLA has not been applied consistently across all provinces in the country. Forest cover and land management contexts differ significantly across provinces as well. The study in six provinces found that the area of forestland that has been allocated to households and communities is considerably smaller than that allocated to State entities. Allocation of forestland to households and communities has been more widespread in Lao Cai, Bac Kan and Ha Tinh provinces (Northern and North Central regions), while less extensive in Lam Dong, Binh Thuan and Ca Mau provinces (Central Highlands, South Coastal, and Mekong regions).

Land and forest tenure systems greatly influence a country’s ability to reduce deforestation and forest degradation. Clear and secure tenure rights over forests are an enabling condition for REDD+ because they provide an incentive for sustainable management and conservation of forests. Tenure rights holders tend to have a stronger interest in the long-term sustainability of forest resources. With secure tenure rights comes a sense of ownership and responsibility, as well as a belief that maintenance of this productive resource will provide consistent benefits for both current and future generations. For example, when tenure rights are perpetual and include the right to exclude outsiders and enforce rules, rights holders are more likely to invest time and resources in protecting and restoring forests through such activities as patrolling forests and combating encroachment and illegal harvesting.

The UN-REDD Programme has supported many partner countries by conducting analyses that highlight the ways in which protecting, restoring and sustainably using forests contributes to the transition towards a green economy. A second area of work is centred on supporting partner countries through private sector engagement and the ways in which actions can be financed under the REDD+ mechanism in practice. The crosscutting topic of private sector engagement in the UN-REDD Programme is of particular relevance, given that most tropical deforestation and forest degradation is directly or indirectly caused by private individuals and entities, including farmers and companies of all sizes that produce, process and trade timber and agricultural commodities such as soy, palm oil, coffee, rubber, cocoa and beef cattle. Charcoal production and slashand-burn activities to meet subsistence needs also contribute to deforestation and forest degradation.