Vietnam has lost half of its mangrove forests over the past 30 years, notably to make way for shrimp ponds. This is a worrying trend, as healthy mangroves make important contributions to both climate change adaptation and mitigation. Mangroves act as a natural barrier against storms, sea level rise and erosion, and have a high potential to store and sequester carbon. In addition, the mangrove ecosystem forms a natural habitat for many aquatic and terrestrial species, and provides a source of livelihood for coastal communities.

To reduce the pressure on mangrove forests, SNV and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) jointly developed the MAM project. With funding from the International Climate Initiative (IKI) of the German Environment Ministry (BMUB), the project supports the development and introduction of sustainable aquaculture models which restore and protect mangrove forests, while enhancing smallholder livelihoods and resilience. 

The aims to replicate and scale up the sustainable integrated mangrove-shrimp farming model along the coasts of Ca Mau, Ben Tre, and Tra Vinh provinces, which together contain half the mangroves in the Mekong Delta.

Objectives till 2020:

• Train 5,000 shrimp farmer households in applying integrated mangrove-shrimp farming practices
• At least three more processing companies commit to providing incentives for integrated mangrove-shrimp farming.
• Mainstream PFES for sustainable mangrove-shrimp aquaculture into national and provincial development plans.

MAM-II is a follow-up to MAM-I: Promoting Ecosystem-Based Adaptation through Reforestation and Sustainable Use of Mangroves that ran between 2012 and 2016. In this phase of the project, around 2000 smallholder shrimp farmers in Ca Mau province received training and technical assistance to enhance the sustainability of their production practices to meet Naturland organic certification standards, which require a 50% mangrove cover on each farm. The project collaborated with processing companies and government authorities to develop stable market linkages and create an enabling policy environment.

Key achievements of the MAM-I project by February 2016:

• Nearly 800 shrimp households obtained Naturland organic certification during 2014-2016 and received price premiums from the world’s leading seafood exporter Minh Phu.
• Payments for Forest Ecosystem Services (PFES) have been made to more than 550 certified households, with a total amount of nearly VND 900,000,000.
• 4,500 farmer households were trained on mangrove ecosystem, international organic shrimp certification standards, and organic shrimp farming practices.
• 2,500 farmer households were certified on sustainable aqua-culture practices
• 80 hectares of mangrove replanted within the shrimp farms of 402 households to meet Naturland’s 50% mangrove coverage requirements.
• 15,600 hectares of mangrove forest effectively protected from clearance.
• 1,000 households supported in building sanitary toilets that meet certification standards.
• A provincial regulation on PES (payment for ecosystem services) for the aquaculture sector has been developed with project support. 

Key achievements of the MAM project as of September 2019:

• 3,200 shrimp households and 2 shrimp hatcheries obtained Naturland organic certification during 2014-2018 and received price premiums from the world’s leading seafood exporter Minh Phu.
• Payments for Forest Ecosystem Services (PFES) have been made to these certified households, with a total amount of more than VND 5.3 billion.
• 5,617 farmer households were trained on mangrove ecosystem, international organic shrimp certification standards, and organic shrimp farming practices.
• 2,500 farmer households were certified on sustainable aqua-culture practices
• 80 hectares of mangrove replanted within the shrimp farms of 402 households to meet Naturland’s 50% mangrove coverage requirements.
• 15,600 hectares of mangrove forest effectively protected from clearance.
• 1,000 households supported in building sanitary toilets that meet certification standards.
• A provincial regulation (111/PPC) and Decree 156 on PES (payment for ecosystem services) for the aquaculture sector have been developed with project support.