Potential for tourism development under the forest canopy

Aquaculture combined with afforestation at the Forest Keeper Tourist Farm, Thanh Phuoc commune, Binh Dai district.

Diverse ecosystem

Ben Tre is only 80km from Ho Chi Minh City, blessed with many lush fruit gardens, charming rivers and wetland ecosystems, characterized by mangrove forests, with diverse and rich flora and fauna.

The Provincial Protection and Special-Use Forest Management Board (QLRPH&DD) is under the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the unit that is managing the forest area located in 3 coastal districts of Ben Tre province: Binh Dai, Ba Tri and Thanh Phu. The total natural area assigned for management is 7,178.76 hectares. Of which, the existing forest land is 4,195.66 hectares, accounting for 58.45% of the total area; the area without forest is 2,983.1 hectares, accounting for 41.55% of the total area.

With a wetland ecosystem, the typical forest in the province is mangrove forest. The fauna and flora are diverse and rich, with endangered and rare species prioritized for protection, typical of the mangrove forest area of ​​the Mekong Delta; there are pristine beaches, coastal sandbars and mangrove forests, a system of rivers and canals that divide into inland sandbars, with wild and interesting scenery.

When visiting the forest, visitors have the opportunity to learn about many unique and special features of the nature of the Southwest region such as: the presence of more than 88 plant species; about 80 species of birds (storks, herons, gongs, gray herons, white ibises, teals...). Along with many wild animals such as pythons, snakes, squirrels, weasels, bats, monitor lizards... In addition, the aquatic fauna has 226 species belonging to 7 classes, 5 phyla of phytoplankton; 105 species of zooplankton belonging to 8 groups; the fish fauna has 117 species of fish belonging to 28 families, in 15 orders. In addition, there are some species belonging to other molluscs and crustaceans. The typical forest in Ben Tre is mangrove forest and casuarina forest. Forest species include mangrove, rhododendron, dung, white mam and poplar.

Director of the Provincial Forest Protection and Development Board Bui Quoc Thong said: “Regarding the livelihood model, people associated with the forest, up to now, there has not been any model applied in the province. Therefore, the unit is implementing the “Project on ecotourism, resort and entertainment in the forest in the province for the period 2022 - 2030”. Currently, the Provincial Forest Protection and Development Board (investor) and the winning bidder have signed a contract to develop the project according to the policy approved by the Provincial People's Committee”.

Issues raised

The process of developing the "Project on ecotourism, resort and recreation in the forest in the province for the period 2022 - 2030" sets out a number of principles for tourism development. Not only complying with the provisions of current legal documents of Vietnam, tourism development must also be consistent with national, sectoral and local policies, orientations and strategies on tourism development, forestry, biodiversity and socio-economic development. At the same time, it must ensure full content according to the provisions of Articles 14, 15, 23, 24 of Decree No. 156/2018/ND-CP dated November 16, 2018 of the Government detailing the implementation of a number of articles of the Forestry Law.

Opening up directions for people to visit forests and exploit the strengths of forest resources also needs to ensure that it contributes to the conservation of natural resources and biodiversity of the entire forest; contributes to raising awareness and responsibility of stakeholders and encourages stakeholders to participate in nature conservation activities, protecting landscapes and wild animals and plants.

In addition, the issue of exploiting tourism under the forest canopy must be associated with promoting the cultural identity of the community, helping to develop the economy, creating jobs for the community living in the forest and in the buffer zone from ecotourism activities to encourage people to participate in nature conservation and forest development. Bringing financial resources to serve the conservation and development of tourist destinations in the managed area.

From the perspective of tourism associated with exploiting forest resources, the Forest Keeper Tourism Farm in Thanh Phuoc Commune, Binh Dai District has for many years combined natural aquaculture and mangrove forest experience tourism, helping forest growers increase their income and motivation for forest economic development. Ms. Trinh Thi Ngoc Hien - Owner of the Forest Keeper Tourism Farm shared: “The first thing we want is to preserve the forest. Because this is a resource for people to rely on for their livelihood. Next, the province needs to have a project to guide the development of tourism under the forest canopy in a specific way regarding mechanisms, planning, and general regulations for households doing tourism, so that those doing tourism can agree with each other, no one is spontaneous, breaks the rules, ensuring fairness in the business process”.

It is known that in 2022, the coastal erosion situation in the province is complicated, causing serious damage to forests. Specifically, the damaged forest area in 2022 in 3 districts is 22.57 hectares (Binh Dai 7.18 hectares, Ba Tri 4.50 hectares, Thanh Phu 10.89 hectares). Also in 2022, through patrolling and checking forest protection, the functional sector discovered and prevented 5 cases of violations of forests and forest land, a decrease of 5 cases compared to the same period last year. Specifically: 1 case of deforestation with an area of ​​290m2 in Thanh Phu district, 4 cases of digging and filling forest land, the total affected forest land area is 6,055.5m2 in Ba Tri district.

Regarding the culture of the 3 coastal districts, there are also traditional craft villages associated with indigenous culture such as: Bao Thanh salt making village, An Thuy dried craft village (now Tiem Tom town), Phu Ngai rice paper craft village... which are attracting many tourists to visit and experience.

Article and photos: Thach Thao

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