Past Projects in the Vietnam Country Office

Past Projects

Strengthening Legal and Law Enforcement Institutions in Preventing and Combating Trafficking in Persons in Viet Nam

Summary: The project's main objective is to enhance the existing mechanisms against trafficking in human beings through the facilitation of networking within law enforcement and the judiciary, increasing investigation and prosecution capacities and the training of personnel of the involved agencies. In line with the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime and its Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, UNODC, through its Global Programme against Trafficking in Human Beings as well as the UNODC Viet Nam Country Office, will assist the Vietnamese Government in enhancing its responses to counteract trafficking in persons as a phenomenon of organized crime in the country. Read more.

Formulation of 2001-2010 Vietnam National Drug Control Master Plan

By strengthening the capacity of the government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, and working jointly with the Vietnam National Drug Control Committee, this project is working to control drug abuse by assisting in the development of a drug control "master plan" for 2001-2010. The project includes an assessment by a national workshop of activities under the 1996-2000 master plan and the drafting of the 2001-2010 national master plan. A second national workshop will support activities to be implemented through the 2001-2010 master plan, in particular, interagency collaboration and advocacy activities.

Drug Control Objective
The long-term objective of the project is to enhance the capacity of the Vietnamese government to reduce drug problems by having an authoritative summary of national policies, defined priorities, and apportioned responsibilities. This also includes acting within international conventions, Policy Declarations, and the Principles on Drug Demand Reduction (enacted during the 1998 UN General Assembly Special Session on Drugs) - - all of which the Vietnamese government is committed to.

Immediate Objective
To increase the capacity of Vietnam to formulate, implement and promote drug control policies within the framework of an updated national master plan for 2001-2010.

Alternative Socio-economic Development Project to Replace Opium Poppy Cultivation, Ky Son Phase II

Summary: The project supports the national capacity to bring about socio-economic changes that will enable farmers to eliminate drug cultivation and abuse. The project is an extension of the pilot scheme in Ky Son District, Nghe An Province, and will be used to develop and demonstrate techniques for replication in other areas.

Migratory hill tribes have cultivated opium poppy in the mountainous areas of northern Vietnam, including the project area, for centuries. Within the project area, the principle cultivators of opium poppy are HMong people who also sometimes employ neighboring Khomu people during periods of peek labor demand. Cultivation of opium within the Ky Son District was reportedly reduced from about 3000 hectares in 1993 to less than 100 hectares in 1999/2000. However, recent surveys show that poppies are cultivated in neighboring districts in Laos. Anecdotal evidence suggests that local farmers from the Vietnamese side of the border are cultivating opium on the Lao side for consumption and sale in Vietnam.

Current conditions -- like suitable soil, isolated areas inhibiting the growth and transportation of bulkier products, an environment that tolerates production and abuse and a lack of alternative opportunities -- favor opium poppy cultivation. The project looks to develop viable licit economic opportunties.

Summary: The project is aimed at reducing the traffic of illicit drugs from the producing areas in Southeast Asia being trafficked for use in Vietnam or for distribution to other countries.

The rugged terrain in the opium cultivation areas and border region with limited roadways and many unauthorized border crossing points plus the close family ties of the people on both sides of border make the detection of drug trafficking difficult. Due to limited resources the law enforcement agencies have not been well trained or equipped to carry out drug law enforcement.

The project will concentrate upon reducing the trafficking of drugs for domestic consumption and on the increasing problem of drugs being shipped through Vietnam which are destined for North America, Europe and Australia. Training and equipment to conduct investigations that target organizations rather than individuals and the increased ability to cooperate with international requests will be provided.

Summary:The programme, aims at strengthening the Vietnam's capacity to bring about socio-economic changes that will enable farmers to eliminate illicit drug cultivation and abuse. Through the implementation of a pilot scheme in Ky Son district, Nghe An province, techniques for replication in other areas in Vietnam will be developed and demonstrated. 

The principle opium poppy cultivators in the project area are H'mong people who, in common with most subsistence hill farmers in the world, are facing increasing change in their lives. Population pressure means their traditional swidden agricultural system is rapidly becoming unsustainable as the cropping cycles are intensified beyond the capacity of the base soils to release plant nutrients. Opium poppy replacement programmes along with campaigns to eliminate forest burning to protect remaining timber resources and watersheds contribute to an interlinking group of problems facing the H'Mong. Development activities in other hill tribe areas in Asia indicate that H'Mong and related tribal groups can and will adopt new, more sustainable cropping systems where good markets can be shown to exist and where other education and social services are provided along with access roads and secure title to use the land.

Lack of access to medical services have led many ethnic minority groups to rely on the use of opium against pains and illnesses. Opium also plays a role in village social and ritual life.

Read more about the alternative development programme in the Ky Son District.

Summary: According to the Government the official number of reported drug abusers in 2001 is 101,036. Estimates by different government agencies put the estimated figure aroung 170,000. 

In urban areas the injecting of drugs, mainly opium, is common, and the sharing of needles and opium solution widespread. As a result, the link between drug abuse and the spread of HIV has emerged as the major drug-related problem in the country. The National AIDS Committee and the Ministry of Labour, which is in charge of coordinating treatment and rehabilitation efforts in the country, also consider HIV prevention among injecting drug users a priority area for interventions.

The project aims at strengthening Viet Nam's capacity to run community-level programmes. Raising of knowledge and awareness about community intervention approaches suitable in Viet Nam will be a major element of the project. Involvement of the local police will be sought in order to secure support to outreach activities.

Drug Abuse Prevention in Schools

Summary:While the issue of drug abuse and illicit opium cultivation has been covered in extra-curricular activities of the school system in Vietnam, drug preventive education has not yet been introduced in the core curricula of either teacher training institutions or the general school system. 

The project will prepare the groundwork for the formal inclusion of drug education in teacher training colleges / high schools and the general school system through studies of the existing situation, development of education materials, experimental intervention in selected schools, and support to the development of a national plan for the introduction of drug preventive education in all schools in Vietnam.

Strengthening of National Drug Control Coordination Institutions

Summary:The project aims at strengthening the national drug control coordination institutions in Vietnam, to enable them to effectively implement the Vietnam Drug Control Masterplan.  It will support building up the national capacity for planning for and coordination of drug control initiatives, active participation of Vietnam in sub-regional and international drug control activities, and Vietnam to become party to the drug control conventions. Key activities included in the masterplan will be developed into full project documents for which external assistance will be sought from bilateral and multilateral sources.

Drug Abuse Situation Analysis and Training for Community-based Treatment and Rehabilitation

Summary: Quantitative information on drug abuse, reported through the police and district/provincial departments to MOLISA at the central level, is readily available in Viet Nam. There is less information available about patterns and factors contributing to abuse. There is an identified need for conducting qualitative studies on drug abuse to inform policy makers on gaps in drug abuse prevention and treatment programmes.  This project aims at making available qualitative information on the drug abuse situation in Viet Nam and, based on this information, introduce systematic training for treatment/rehabilitation professionals in effective methods of community-based intervention / rehabilitation.