The primamry aims of the planning grant are to promote the participation of key stakeholders of the proposed project, including local authorities and relevant agencies and communties, 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 mobilisation.
Identifying the project sites
The proposed project aims to contributing to solving the problem of serious land degradation in the project area. It is intended to be carried out in Cam Ranh District, Khanh Hoa Province. The primary purpose of the proposed project is to control land degradation and desertification in the project area through developing an agroforestry model which suits the local socio-economic and physical conditions, especially the waste land which has lost agricultural potential, and the arid climate and weather, hence contributing to regreening the area. The model promotes inter-cropping of grafted cashew and other short-term agricultural crops. Techniques in grafted cashew development, replacing deteriorated and flawed cashew orchards with intensive ones of advanced high-yield varieties to improve the yield of the cashew orchards, will be transferred to farmers. Through undertaking the project activities, the proposed project aims to raise environmental awareness of local stakeholders and community on the issues of land degradation and desertification.