The primary aims of the planning grant are to promote the participation of key stakeholders of the proposed project, including local authorities and relevant agencies and communities, and provide scientific assistance for the project development. Major activities of the project include conducting surveys on socio-economic conditions of the proposed project site, identifying proposed project objectives and activities and assessing their feasibility, and providing needed technical assistance in project design and writing project proposal which will be submitted to GEF/SGP for review and appraisal; and identifying possibilities for project synergies and resource mobilization.

Vietnam is considered an owner of various domestic animal genetic resources of which there are dozens of original genetic resources. According to statistics in 2005, 60 domestic breeds were found, among which there were valuable breeds such as Bau Quy ducks, H?mong chicken, U Dau Riu cows.

Recently, genetic conservation has been implemented in Vietnam with the government?s efforts and technical and financial support from international organizations. Conservation of domestic animals has aimed at crossbreeding with economically effective breeds, protecting breeding system, ensuring the future demand, and for research and training.

However, compared with standards and guidelines of FAO, breed conservation in Vietnam has some limitations. Discovered breeds have not been conserved at secure level; have not been researched for productivity growth, social-economic development and poverty relief.

One of the weaknesses and drawbacks of national genetic conservation is ?narrow in width, shallow in depth?. Many other breeds have not been researched and conserved. There has not been a nation wide general survey program. In mountainous and remote areas, animal breeding has been done by families, has not been developed for industrialization and specialization. There is a potential for breed discovery in these sites for little crossbreeding with foreign breeds. Provinces in these areas have not been paid enough attention for animal discovery. It is important to mobilize the participation of provinces in discovering animals for the effectiveness and sustainability of breed conservation in general and breed discovery in particular.
Goal:
- to conserve genetic resources of domestic animals which are at risk of being extinct, improving biodiversity conservation, supporting research and providing resources for breed selection and crossbreeding to have high productivity, immune ability, and suitability to local climate and practices.
Objectives:
- to select areas which are highly potential for surveys on discovering unknown domestic animals;
- to strengthen local participations in surveys on discovering and conserving animals to improve biodiversity.
Main activities:
- Organizing a national conference on introducing the project and consulting ideas to select sites for survey implementation;
- Selecting surveyors in districts and mobilizing commitments from local participants;
- Building local surveyors? capacity on surveying and discovering unknown domestic animals;
- Discovering 10-15 domestic animals which are not in the list of Vietnam domestic animals, which will be approved by National Committee on Genetic Resources;
- Having commitments from local participants on preserving newly discovered domestic animals;
- Signing commitments on implementation plan to conserve domestic animals by central and local animal managers, in which responsibility of state and local administrators is clarified.