Viet Nam

by Do Van Hoe

Introduction

1. Viet Nam continues to achieve great success in the agricultural sector in recent years. Rice, coffee, vegetables, fruits and other important crops have increased in terms of production and export, particularly rice.

2. Established in 1961 PPD - Viet Nam is a State management agency under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), joined International Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticide in 1989 and follows FAO guideline and other International Organizations as FAO, UNEP, WHO guideline in promoting GAP and plant protection works.

3. The FAO Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticide provides information on pesticide registration and management among countries in order to best implement the code in general and Code of Conduct provides guidelines for pesticide management in Viet Nam in particular.

4. Based on guideline of FAO Code of Conduct the registration scheme was revised inline with international scheme and Viet Nam Government support and pay attention to pesticide management and the pesticide management in Viet Nam will be better.

5. Under International Organization guidelines from FAO, UNEP, WHO, the National plant protection and quarantine of Viet Nam was further strengthened and supported by the government in new policy and new regulation.

A. Pest and pesticide management

National Plant Protection Organisation in Viet Nam

Established in 1961, Plant Protection Department (PPD) is a State management body under administration of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development-MARD. It employs around 465 staff working in the areas of plant protection, plant quarantine, inspection, and pesticide management.

Mandate

• To carry out plant protection extension activities

• To administer plant quarantine activities at the national level

• To conduct pesticide management including pesticide registration and residue control

Network

• Pesticide Division: responsible for conducting pesticide management including pesticide registration.

• 4 Regional Plant Protection Centers: Guiding provincial plant protection authorities in pest control, inspection plant protection and quarantine, pesticide management.

• 64 Plant Protection Sub-departments: working at field level and under the jurisdiction of provincial People's Committees

• Manpower: nearly 3 000 Plant Protection Officers

Activities

• Plant Protection Activities

  - Pest surveillance and forecasting to provide early warnings

  - Implementation of pest control programs

  - Training of trainers and farmers on IPM using participatory non-formal education process

• Plant Quarantine Activities

  - Providing phytosanitary inspection services and certification for the import and export of plant commodities

  - Supervising phytosanitary treatments for the import and export of plant commodities

  - Undertaking domestic and post entry quarantine procedures

  - Conducting research and development activities in plant quarantine area

• Pesticide Management

  - Pesticide Division takes responsibility of pesticide management and registration

  - 2 Pesticide Control Centers located in Hanoi and HCMC are assigned to conduct pesticide quality assurance, residue control and field trials for bio-efficacy of pesticides to be registered in Viet Nam

Organizational Chart

National IPM Program in Viet Nam

• Started in 1992 with financial and technical support from FAO with main activities are Training of Trainers (TOT), Farmer Field School (FFS) and follow-up FFS activities.

• PPD is responsible for implementing the National IPM Program coordination with IPM specialist group of PPD working closely with major donors including FAO, WB, EU, DANIDA, and NORAD. Currently, it maintains 11 IPM related projects involving many stakeholders such as farmers, government line ministries, international NGOs, national and international research institutions, and bilateral and multilateral donors.

• IPM priority focused mainly on rice and vegetable crops. Needs of IPM program in Viet Nam further develop and promote including improve the ability of PP-system from center to locality. Continuously innovate curriculum in FFS; FFS approach applied widely in agriculture extension.

• The problem of pest resistance (both agriculture and public health) in Viet Nam is big problem. For the efforts solves this problem methods applied as use resistance varieties, exchange new pesticide, use natural enemies introduced.

• Main constrain to IPM programs in Viet Nam: excessive pesticide advertisement affects mentality of farmers; training demand for farmers is very high but the capacity on financial and manpower limited.

B. Testing, quality control and effects in the field

Control the quality and residue of pesticide

• The quality and residue control of pesticides must follow the regulation of 25^th March 2003 issued by MARD. All exported and imported pesticides must be examined for quality.

• The examination is carried out by the North Center and the South Center on pesticide quality and residue control, under PPD. The agricultural products are analysed for residues of pesticides in them.

• The pesticide quality and residue control must conform to the Vietnamese National Standard, sector standard (by MARD) or unit standard (by PPD). In case these standards are not available, PPD allows the use of methods of international organizations or manufacturers who produce the pesticide.

• Main constraints to implementation at national level are limited testing capacity, manpower shortage, lack of equipment, etc.

C. Health and environmental information

• The effects of pesticide on human health and environment take great attention from the government.

  - The Instruction of Prime Minister No 29/1998/CT-TTg on strengthening the control on the use of pesticides and other organic chemical to be difficult in decomposition (POP) issued on August 25, 1998.

  - Ministry of Natural Resource and Environment have issued the technical procedures for disposing or re-use of remaining and banned substances in organic-phosphorous class, cyanic substances, organic-chlorine class.

• In Viet Nam, responsibility of monitoring the effects of pesticide on human health is with the Ministry of Health, the effects of pesticide on the environment with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

D. Pesticide use in Viet Nam

Before 1992, there were only 77 active ingredients with 96 product names belonging to 25 foreign firms that have been permitted for use in Viet Nam. Up to now 2005, there have been more than 400 active ingredients with more than 1 000 product names which are supplied by more than 100 foreign and domestic companies (Table 3).

Table 1. Status of the imported pesticide and companies concerned

About 99 percent of pesticides quantities used in Viet Nam are imported. In recent years, imported pesticide quantities rose to nearly 50 000 tons finished product fp/year (2004) from 13.000 - 14.000 tons fp/year before 1990, while imported value have been increased to around 200 mill USD (1998) and about 166 mill USD (2003) from 10 mill USD before 1990 (Table 4).

Table 2. Amount and value of imported pesticide

It should be noted that pesticide kinds have been changed considerably. If in 1991 insecticide makes up 83.3 percent, fungicide 9.5 percent, herbicide 4.1 percent, others 3.1 percent, respectively, then in 2004 that ratio was 38.0 percent, 28.0 percent, 30 percent and 1.8 percent, respectively.

Table 3. Ratio of different kinds of pesticide supplied in Viet Nam

E. Selected standards

• Ordinance on Plant Protection and Quarantine and legal documents related to pesticide has been revised in 2001 including pesticide regulations.

• Checking yearly phasing severely toxic pesticide out of list of pesticides permitted for use in Viet Nam.

• Raising awareness and training for farmers on using pesticide implemented widely in whole country by IPM program and other programs.

• Under assistance from International organizations, national and NGO organizations. Viet Nam government makes efforts on inventory, collection and disposal of obsolete pesticides remaining.

• Some constraints to implementation at national level such as limited testing capacity, manpower shortage, lack of equipment, etc.

Conclusions and comments

Areas of the code that are important for Viet Nam

• Providing information on pesticide registration and management among countries in order to best conducting the Code.

• Code of Conduct provides guideline for pesticide management in Viet Nam.

• Training/workshop that improved the knowledge of officers for better management pesticide in Viet Nam.

Strength and weakness of the present pesticide management system in Viet Nam

Strength

• Based on guideline, the registration scheme was revised inline with international scheme.

• Viet Nam Government support and pay attention to pesticide management and the pesticide management in Viet Nam will be better.

• Training/education farmers and providing them the best knowledge on pesticide use.

Weakness

• Awareness of farmer on pesticide still limited.

• Pressure of commercialization.

• Influence of pesticide companies is still high.

• Inspection and control pesticide import, formulation, business still need to be strengthened.

Major bottom-necks to ensure sound pesticide management

• The most important is to have National Program of Training/Education Farmer to improve their knowledge on the best use of pesticides.

Priority in Viet Nam that need to be strengthened

• Amendment of pesticide registration scheme.

• Expanding the inspection and control of pesticide importation, formulation, distribution and use.

• Continuation of training/education program on safe use of pesticide.

QUESTIONNAIRE SUMMARY

Viet Nam

Selected Country Statistics:

GDP = Gross Domestic Product; GNI = Gross National Income; Hunger = Population below minimum energy requirement; FAOSTAT = latest data entry between 1998 and 2002

Institutional Profile

Industry Associations: -
Non-Governmental Associations: Viet Nam Plant Protection Assoc. (VPPA)

Questionnaire responses: Yes = Yes; - = No;? = don't know; (blank) = no answer