Conservation and sustainable use of indigenous medicinal plants of the Cao Lan ethnic minority in Doi Can Commune, Yen Son District, Tuyen Quang Province
Vietnam has been renowned as a country endowed with a vast forested area. Vietnam's forest maintains plant genetic resources not only for the country but also for the entire world. According to statistical data, Vietnam possesses more than 10,836 plant species. Among them, there are over 3,000 species of medicinal plants. However, deforestation and forest degradation has resulted in the significant loss of biodiversity in general and medicinal plant resources in particular. This loss has led to the erosion of valuable traditional knowledge and practice of the ethnic minorities in using these medicinal plant resources for disease treatment.
The project will be carried out in Doi Can Commune, Yen Son District, Tuyen Quang Province. The Cao Lan ethnic minority accounts for 70% of the population of the commune. The commune has the Ethnomedicinal Association consisting of 23 members. The Cao Lan communities collect wild medicinal plants in the forest for disease treatment purpose and for trade. They have valuable knowledge and experience in using medicinal plants for disease treatment.
Deforestation and overexploitation of these medicinal plant resources have resulted in the depletion of medicinal plant resources in the area. Many species, such as To moc, ba kich (Morinda officinalis), Hoang dang (Fibraurea tinctoria) and Huyet dang (spatholobus spp.), which used to be abundant, have become very rare and some in the threshold of extinction in the region. Some of them are endemic in the area and are threatened in the native habitat. Due to the need of material to make traditional medicine, the community has begun to grow plants in their home garden. However, due to the lack of technical knowledge, these activities have not been successful.
The primary purpose of the project is to promote conservation and sustainable use of medicinal plants resources in the project area, preserving traditional knowledge and practices in using medicinal plants for disease treatment of the Cao Lan community. The project promotes in situ conservation of these medicinal plant resources by conducting a survey on the medicinal plant resources, establishing an inventory of medicinal plant resources in the project area, and identifying their location in their native for preservation. It also aims generating community interest and income in home cultivation of wild species, which is in need of the community and market, demand, hence increasing community income from medicinal plant cultivation. Appropriate techniques in conservation and sustainable use of medicinal plant resources will be transferred to farmers through developing conservation home garden of medicinal plants. Through undertaking the project activities, the project aims to raise environmental awareness of local stakeholders and community on the issues of biodiversity conservation and sustainable use of forest resources, including medicinal plants resources. The project supports the conservation of biodiversity in general and medicinal plant resources in particular through developing the model which has the potential to be largely replicated in other localities where the same problem has occurred, contributing to preserving traditional knowledge and experience of the ethnic communities in using medicinal plants for disease treatment.
The project will be carried out in Doi Can Commune, Yen Son District, Tuyen Quang Province. The Cao Lan ethnic minority accounts for 70% of the population of the commune. The commune has the Ethnomedicinal Association consisting of 23 members. The Cao Lan communities collect wild medicinal plants in the forest for disease treatment purpose and for trade. They have valuable knowledge and experience in using medicinal plants for disease treatment.
Deforestation and overexploitation of these medicinal plant resources have resulted in the depletion of medicinal plant resources in the area. Many species, such as To moc, ba kich (Morinda officinalis), Hoang dang (Fibraurea tinctoria) and Huyet dang (spatholobus spp.), which used to be abundant, have become very rare and some in the threshold of extinction in the region. Some of them are endemic in the area and are threatened in the native habitat. Due to the need of material to make traditional medicine, the community has begun to grow plants in their home garden. However, due to the lack of technical knowledge, these activities have not been successful.
The primary purpose of the project is to promote conservation and sustainable use of medicinal plants resources in the project area, preserving traditional knowledge and practices in using medicinal plants for disease treatment of the Cao Lan community. The project promotes in situ conservation of these medicinal plant resources by conducting a survey on the medicinal plant resources, establishing an inventory of medicinal plant resources in the project area, and identifying their location in their native for preservation. It also aims generating community interest and income in home cultivation of wild species, which is in need of the community and market, demand, hence increasing community income from medicinal plant cultivation. Appropriate techniques in conservation and sustainable use of medicinal plant resources will be transferred to farmers through developing conservation home garden of medicinal plants. Through undertaking the project activities, the project aims to raise environmental awareness of local stakeholders and community on the issues of biodiversity conservation and sustainable use of forest resources, including medicinal plants resources. The project supports the conservation of biodiversity in general and medicinal plant resources in particular through developing the model which has the potential to be largely replicated in other localities where the same problem has occurred, contributing to preserving traditional knowledge and experience of the ethnic communities in using medicinal plants for disease treatment.
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Project Snapshot
Grantee:
Farmers' Association of Doi Can Commune
Country:
Viet nam
Area Of Work:
Biodiversity
Grant Amount:
US$ 32,604.00
Co-Financing Cash:
Co-Financing in-Kind:
US$ 9,057.00
Project Number:
VIE/00/008
Status:
Satisfactorily Completed
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Project Characteristics and Results
Emphasis on Sustainable Livelihoods
+ The main income of the commune Doi (Cao Lan ethnic occupy?%) Came from the traditional harvest, cultivation of medicinal plants as medicine, poultices, massage, alcohol, drugs, ... treatment for the local and surrounding areas. The commune has 30 healers, of which 10 have more specific experience, serving as home remedies.
Capacity - Building Component
- 05 trainings for 4 household gardens and orchard-clinics on technology transfer modeling conservation of medicinal plants garden.
- Traditional-ethnic-style community workshop for 60 participants including Oriental medicine doctor & physician delegates from Tuyen Quang Province and their counterparts from Yen Son District and some neighboring communes, village to exchange experience on ethnic traditional remedies, the urgency to protect the medicinal plant resources are increasingly depleted, the sustainable use of medicinal plant resources of the ethnic Lan Cao.
- Organize a contest to find out the resources of medicinal plants of Cao Lan for student audience in Yen Son Secondary School (250 students).
- To organize 5 technical trainings on medicine crop income (200participants) tillage techniques, planting, fertilizing, harvesting and storage as well as consumption of medicinal plants, including Curcuma zeodaria, Rhizoma Kaempferiae galangae, Discorea, etc.
- 1 sightseeing (60 people) about the growing, processing, consumption of medicinal plants in Nghia Trai.
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SGP Country office contact
Ms. Huyen Thu Thi NGUYEN
Phone:
(84 24) 38500150
Fax:
(84-24) 37265520
Email:
Ms. Ngoc Bich Kieu
Email:
Address
One Green UN house, 304 Kim Ma district
Hanoi, 100000
Hanoi, 100000
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