Research on asessing the situation and solutions for livelihood development associated with biodiversity conservation for people in the buffer zone of Bach Ma National Park

Abstract

This study assessed the current livelihood status of people in the buffer zone of Bach Ma National Park through a survey and data collection of households in Thuong Nhat and Huong Loc communes, Nam Dong district, Thua Thien Hue province. The results show that there are differences in accessing and using livelihood capitals between the two buffer zone communes of Thuong Nhat and Huong Loc. The main source of income of households in Thuong Nhat and Huong Loc communes is mainly from agricultural and forestry production activities. The lives of people in the two communes are improving and relatively stable, however, the livelihood capitals of some households in the two communes are still limited, non-timber forest products still play a certain role in people's livelihood. Through the multivariate regression model, the main factors affecting total household income in the study area were identified in order of priority: (1) Income from hired labor, (2) Production land area, (3) Income from trading, (4) Ethnicity, (5) Cultural level. Based on the analysis of the characteristics of livelihood capitals and factors affecting household income, the study proposed solutions to contribute to the development of livelihood capitalsand income increament in association with biodiversity conservation for the people in the 2 buffer zone communes of Bach Ma National Park.