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WWF-Viet Nam is recognised as the leading conservation organisation in the country, bringing solutions and support to the government and other key players to meet the country’s development challenges.
Viet Nam lies in the Greater Mekong region, one of the most biologically diverse areas on the planet. The rich natural resources support the livelihoods and diverse well-being of millions of people in mainland South East Asia. WWF Viet Nam is working to conserve the region’s biodiversity and secure, sustainable future for its people.
Home to 16% of the world's flora and fauna species, Viet Nam has an equally diverse landscape of mountain ranges, tropical rainforests, mangroves, dry forests, coasts, oceans, rivers and lakes. Its landscapes have been identified as belonging to part of the 200 Global ecoregions - the world’s most biologically important areas to conserve for future generations.
However, many species are threatened or endangered due to habitat loss, poorly planned infrastructure, climate change, unsustainable farming methods and poaching. Therefore conservation education, policy change and cooperation on a local and corporate level are crucial.
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Within the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in an area so remote that it can only be accessed by water or air, lies the Salonga National Park.
Extending over 33,350km2, Africa's largest forest national park is home to local and indigenous communities who share their home with 51 known species of mammals, 129 species of fish, and 223 species of birds, including forest elephants, bonobos, bongos, giant pangolins, and the endemic Congo peacock.
Historical challenges and rising pressures
Unfortunately, Salonga has faced many years of turmoil as a result of civil conflict. This has resulted in significant instability. People living in the region face terrible socio-economic hardship, with weak governance and a lack of services.
Salonga was classified as a World Heritage site in 1984. But its incredible biodiversity is under intense threat today from poaching and wildlife trafficking, which endanger its heritage status and, critically, the lives and livelihoods of the people who depend on its resources. The area has recently suffered from significant wildlife crime as poachers have targeted elephants for ivory. There is also a large commercial trade in bushmeat from the area to markets in Congolese cities.
Pressure on the government ecoguards tasked with protecting Salonga against such threats are an all too real challenge. And while their jobs are difficult and dangerous, violence by some government ecoguards against community members is an equally grave concern. There have been disturbing reports in recent years of some government ecoguards using inappropriate force against local community members. To assist efforts to hold accountable government rangers accused of criminal acts, WWF International commissioned a report from a local human rights group for the express purpose of assisting the government in holding any violent rangers to account. The investigative team reviewed substantial evidence relating to 21 allegations against rangers and/or military personnel and interviewed reported victims, witnesses, and accused. With even a single case of violation being one too many, especially for people that have been historically marginalized and discriminated against in the DRC, the findings of the recent report are distressing. WWF has and will continue to advocate for and fully support swift prosecution of any government ecoguard involved in any violence against community members.
Inclusive conservation
WWF's goal is to protect both people and nature in Salonga, towards our vision of a future in which both people and nature thrive.
As WWF and other conservation organisations make the call for an ambitious New Deal for Nature and People, including scientific targets that reverse nature loss, address the climate crisis, and deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals, we continue to advance strengthened approaches to conservation that support Indigenous Peoples and local communities to secure rights and access to their collective lands and territories.
To date in Salonga, we've played a key role in the following actions:
While these discussions proceed, we are already engaged with the Government to identify and mitigate risks for communities related to conservation activities in Salonga, and in addition we are:
As we work to help secure the long-term future of Salonga for the well-being of people and nature, both locally and worldwide, we remain fully committed to work together with partners and local communities to protect Salonga and the people who depend on it.
Extending over 33,350km2, Africa's largest forest national park is home to local and indigenous communities who share their home with 51 known species of mammals, 129 species of fish, and 223 species of birds, including forest elephants, bonobos, bongos, giant pangolins, and the endemic Congo peacock.
Historical challenges and rising pressures
Unfortunately, Salonga has faced many years of turmoil as a result of civil conflict. This has resulted in significant instability. People living in the region face terrible socio-economic hardship, with weak governance and a lack of services.
Salonga was classified as a World Heritage site in 1984. But its incredible biodiversity is under intense threat today from poaching and wildlife trafficking, which endanger its heritage status and, critically, the lives and livelihoods of the people who depend on its resources. The area has recently suffered from significant wildlife crime as poachers have targeted elephants for ivory. There is also a large commercial trade in bushmeat from the area to markets in Congolese cities.
Pressure on the government ecoguards tasked with protecting Salonga against such threats are an all too real challenge. And while their jobs are difficult and dangerous, violence by some government ecoguards against community members is an equally grave concern. There have been disturbing reports in recent years of some government ecoguards using inappropriate force against local community members. To assist efforts to hold accountable government rangers accused of criminal acts, WWF International commissioned a report from a local human rights group for the express purpose of assisting the government in holding any violent rangers to account. The investigative team reviewed substantial evidence relating to 21 allegations against rangers and/or military personnel and interviewed reported victims, witnesses, and accused. With even a single case of violation being one too many, especially for people that have been historically marginalized and discriminated against in the DRC, the findings of the recent report are distressing. WWF has and will continue to advocate for and fully support swift prosecution of any government ecoguard involved in any violence against community members.
Inclusive conservation
WWF's goal is to protect both people and nature in Salonga, towards our vision of a future in which both people and nature thrive.
As WWF and other conservation organisations make the call for an ambitious New Deal for Nature and People, including scientific targets that reverse nature loss, address the climate crisis, and deliver on the Sustainable Development Goals, we continue to advance strengthened approaches to conservation that support Indigenous Peoples and local communities to secure rights and access to their collective lands and territories.
To date in Salonga, we've played a key role in the following actions:
- Creation and official validation of 172.807 ha community forests, providing land rights to local communities achieved 3 community forests (13.000 ha) by indigenous BaTwa and further 250.000 ha of community forests in the park corridor in process of creation and validation.
- 350 CLD (comités locaux de développement - local development committees) as well as 5 CARG (Conseil Agricole Rural de Gestion - Rural Agricultural Management Council), 3 CLER (Comité Local d'Entretien Routier - Local Road Maintenance Committee) and 171 Organisations paysannes (Farmer associations) set up. Working on rural development activities with partner organizations. A key focus of these interventions has been on conservation agriculture—measures to intensify farming as an alternative to slash and burn cropping, mainly by supporting farmer field schools and pilot farms, facilitating market access, supporting extension and setting up seed banks and nurseries.
- Supporting the development of two community health centers for the BaTwa, supported cottage industries (i.e. soap making) and invested in literacy education for the BaTwa people.
While these discussions proceed, we are already engaged with the Government to identify and mitigate risks for communities related to conservation activities in Salonga, and in addition we are:
- As part of WWF's enhanced Environmental and Social Safeguards Framework, working with the government's l'Institut Congolais pour la Conservation de la Nature (ICCN) to identify actions to reduce risks, including a mandatory guide of conduct to be signed by all government ecoguards, offering training and mentoring on human rights and calling for immediate consequences for any misconduct according to regulations in place in the DRC;
- Taking steps to ensure all government ecoguards in Salonga undergo further training in human rights prior to being permitted to join patrols from Jan 2020 onwards; and
- Urgently advancing a new and strengthened grievance mechanism to be available to all community members in and around the park, to be run by an independent human rights organization.
As we work to help secure the long-term future of Salonga for the well-being of people and nature, both locally and worldwide, we remain fully committed to work together with partners and local communities to protect Salonga and the people who depend on it.
At WWF, we know that people and nature go hand in hand and local and indigenous communities must be a cornerstone of conservation efforts. It is the guiding principle that we hold ourselves to, and one that we are committed to continually review our work against, especially in the world's most complex, fragile places where people and nature are both at risk, such as the Messok Dja landscape in the Republic of Congo.
We are therefore deeply concerned with the findings of a draft report of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) Social and Environmental Compliance Unit (SECU) due to be published for public consultation. As we aim to create positive impact for people and nature, the report highlights the underlying issues and challenges facing communities and organizations like ours on the ground that we have been working hard to address. We are especially distressed by the concerns raised regarding relationships between government-employed rangers and local communities, including allegations of abuse, and we are treating these as matters of highest importance. Any breach of our social and human rights commitments is unacceptable to us.
As we take a close look at the report's observations and analyse fully how the steps we have been putting in place can help further address the issues raised, it is important to note that some of the observations are limited to a field visit in February 2019 before reforms currently underway were in place, and the present draft contains various factual inaccuracies related to WWF's role and involvement in the government-led ETIC programme. We will continue to do all we can to address the deeper concerns raised, and tackle the challenges communities and civil society organizations like ours are confronted with in fragile, high-risk areas.
As the Republic of Congo considers possibilities to protect the Messok Dja forests from escalating pressures, we have been working very hard towards ensuring local communities and their voices are heard. In November 2019, on the basis of expert analyses we commissioned, we helped bring together representatives of 35 of the 37 concerned communities around Messok Dja, the two impacted logging companies, the government (delegation of Indigenous Peoples, delegation of Protected Areas, delegation of Forest Economy), CSOs together with the NGO consortium of Brainforest, Comptoir Juridique Junior and Cercle des Populations Autochtones de la Sangha, accompanied by a fourth NGO (FGDH) acting as an independent observer, to identify a way forward for Messok Dja, with communities and for communities.
Local people and communities must be stewards of conservation efforts. This is why we have been reviewing our approach in Messok Dja for the past 18 months, sharing updates here and here, to identify solutions together with the communities, and we will continue to do so, learning from and together with partners like UNDP.
***
Additional background:
We have officially written to UNDP to clarify the following inaccuraices in the current draft version of the SECU report:
- Information on allegations: We are concerned that in the draft version of the report, SECU has not so far shared information that will enable the RoC authorities or ETIC to take further action on the allegations it raises. We have requested the SECU team to share its findings with us so we can act together to refer these to the competent authorities immediately and also take action against any WWF staff found to be in breach of our policies, processes and commitments.
- The situation on the ground today: The report is based on observations from a field mission conducted almost a year ago and does not reflect the critical steps taken since in terms of grievance mechanisms, regular weekly meetings being held in villages to raise concerns, the progress made on collective stakeholder meetings and dialogue to discuss forest governance etc.
- Current community access to Messok Dja: Messok Dja is currently part of two logging concessions and does not have a specific protected status. There is therefore no restriction of access for communities living in and around the forests and we are deeply concerned by the report's assertions on restrictions on community access.
- WWF's role in the ETIC programme: ETIC is an entity which is distinct to WWF. While it is a collaboration between the government of the Republic of Congo and WWF, ETIC staff are formal employees of the state, their employment contract is signed by the Ministry MEFDDE (known as MEF now) and this includes government ecoguards. The staff working for WWF in the ETIC programme, namely the technical coordinator and staff, work on the basis of full time consultancy contracts with WWF. Also, while the total budget of the UNDP programme was at USD 23,807 million, the specific grant to WWF was for an amount of USD194,000.
1903 days agoWe are therefore deeply concerned with the findings of a draft report of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) Social and Environmental Compliance Unit (SECU) due to be published for public consultation. As we aim to create positive impact for people and nature, the report highlights the underlying issues and challenges facing communities and organizations like ours on the ground that we have been working hard to address. We are especially distressed by the concerns raised regarding relationships between government-employed rangers and local communities, including allegations of abuse, and we are treating these as matters of highest importance. Any breach of our social and human rights commitments is unacceptable to us.
As we take a close look at the report's observations and analyse fully how the steps we have been putting in place can help further address the issues raised, it is important to note that some of the observations are limited to a field visit in February 2019 before reforms currently underway were in place, and the present draft contains various factual inaccuracies related to WWF's role and involvement in the government-led ETIC programme. We will continue to do all we can to address the deeper concerns raised, and tackle the challenges communities and civil society organizations like ours are confronted with in fragile, high-risk areas.
As the Republic of Congo considers possibilities to protect the Messok Dja forests from escalating pressures, we have been working very hard towards ensuring local communities and their voices are heard. In November 2019, on the basis of expert analyses we commissioned, we helped bring together representatives of 35 of the 37 concerned communities around Messok Dja, the two impacted logging companies, the government (delegation of Indigenous Peoples, delegation of Protected Areas, delegation of Forest Economy), CSOs together with the NGO consortium of Brainforest, Comptoir Juridique Junior and Cercle des Populations Autochtones de la Sangha, accompanied by a fourth NGO (FGDH) acting as an independent observer, to identify a way forward for Messok Dja, with communities and for communities.
Local people and communities must be stewards of conservation efforts. This is why we have been reviewing our approach in Messok Dja for the past 18 months, sharing updates here and here, to identify solutions together with the communities, and we will continue to do so, learning from and together with partners like UNDP.
***
Additional background:
We have officially written to UNDP to clarify the following inaccuraices in the current draft version of the SECU report:
- Information on allegations: We are concerned that in the draft version of the report, SECU has not so far shared information that will enable the RoC authorities or ETIC to take further action on the allegations it raises. We have requested the SECU team to share its findings with us so we can act together to refer these to the competent authorities immediately and also take action against any WWF staff found to be in breach of our policies, processes and commitments.
- The situation on the ground today: The report is based on observations from a field mission conducted almost a year ago and does not reflect the critical steps taken since in terms of grievance mechanisms, regular weekly meetings being held in villages to raise concerns, the progress made on collective stakeholder meetings and dialogue to discuss forest governance etc.
- Current community access to Messok Dja: Messok Dja is currently part of two logging concessions and does not have a specific protected status. There is therefore no restriction of access for communities living in and around the forests and we are deeply concerned by the report's assertions on restrictions on community access.
- WWF's role in the ETIC programme: ETIC is an entity which is distinct to WWF. While it is a collaboration between the government of the Republic of Congo and WWF, ETIC staff are formal employees of the state, their employment contract is signed by the Ministry MEFDDE (known as MEF now) and this includes government ecoguards. The staff working for WWF in the ETIC programme, namely the technical coordinator and staff, work on the basis of full time consultancy contracts with WWF. Also, while the total budget of the UNDP programme was at USD 23,807 million, the specific grant to WWF was for an amount of USD194,000.
SINGAPORE, January 30, 2020 – Launched today, WWF's new study and online tool – RESPOND (Resilient and Sustainable Portfolios that Protect Nature and Drive Decarbonisation) – provides asset managers with a means to move beyond current market practices to improve portfolio resilience and alignment with a low carbon and sustainable future, through science-based approaches to responsible investment (RI).The findings of the study, which analyses the publicly disclosed responsible investment approaches of 22 ESG-leader[1] asset managers operating in Asia, show that important first steps have been taken to address climate-related risks. However, asset managers now need to complement their RI approaches by also focusing on other threats from natural capital loss, including water risk, deforestation, biodiversity loss and ocean degradation, and by making greater reference to science-based criteria when addressing sustainability issues in their investment portfolios. Such action will be crucial for achieving the Paris Agreement and Sustainable Development Goals, as humanity edges closer to key tipping points in Earth's natural systems and the risks that the climate emergency and natural capital degradation pose to financial stability become ever clearer.
Asia at greater risk
Asia is particularly at risk, with many of the region's economies founded on industries like manufacturing, fisheries and agriculture. All of these depend on healthily functioning natural capital and are highly exposed to climate change. The ADB has warned that unabated warming could undermine the significant socio-economic development the region has achieved, and has emphasized that climate change could have "severe effects on livelihoods which in turn would affect human health, migration dynamics and the potential for conflicts." For asset managers, greater consideration of climate and natural capital risks when investing, and engaging with unsustainable businesses in Asia, will be key to ensuring more resilient and sustainable Asian investment portfolios.
"The continued loss of our biodiversity and natural capital, alongside the crisis of climate change, severely threatens our collective survival. By supporting portfolio companies with time-bound and science-based expectations to address natural capital issues and by engaging them as shareholders, asset managers can help transform Asia's economies into ones that ensure socioeconomic wellbeing while protecting and restoring natural capital. In doing so, they can demonstrate to asset owners their ability to improve long-term sustainability and portfolio resilience." said Jeanne Stampe, WWF's Head of Asia Sustainable Finance.
Based on WWF's best practice responsible investment framework, the RESPOND online tool showcases how 22 asset managers approach responsible investment across six pillars: purpose, policies, processes, people, products, and portfolio. RESPOND empowers asset managers to enhance their responsible investment capabilities, encouraging a race to the top in the industry.
The tool will be of particular interest to asset owners, who can use its insights to engage asset managers. Keiichi Nakajima, General Manager of MS&AD Insurance Group, said, "WWF's RESPOND tool and framework offer useful reference points for comparing asset managers on their approaches to responsible investment and climate change. We believe RESPOND will help us to engage with asset managers, and that asset managers will use it to identify areas for improvement. We expect all the asset managers in the region will play key roles in sustainable finance by adapting best practices through RESPOND."
Key findings
The findings show that the 22 asset managers currently deploy a wide array of approaches to integrate sustainability, and in particular climate change, into their investment processes. As shown in the summary graph (see figure in Annex), the 22 asset managers' overall strong performance on the 'Purpose', 'Process' and 'Products' pillars of WWF's responsible investment framework reflects how efforts so far to integrate climate change and sustainability into their businesses have focused on commitments, procedural innovation, and product development. In this way, they set the pace among asset managers competing for mandates from asset owners with increasingly ambitious climate strategies.
However, to cement their status as industry leaders, they will need to complement their progress to date with additional efforts on the 'Policies', 'People', and 'Portfolio' pillars. Addressing sub-indicators under 'Policies' in particular will be critical to ensure their efforts and commitments translate into real change in their investee companies. Here is where they can leverage their leadership and push the boundaries of responsible investment, especially in Asia, even further – on climate change, but also on wider issues like accelerating nature loss and ecosystem collapse. For example, of the 22 asset managers in the study:
- 100% publicly recognize the long-term risks that climate change poses and support the TCFD recommendations, but just 36% have or will set targets to align their portfolios with a 1.5°C climate target.
- 90% consider water risk as a part of their investment decision making processes, but only 18% expect companies to practice water stewardship.
- 82% consider issues like deforestation and biodiversity loss when making investment decisions, but only 36% expect investee companies to obtain or support relevant sustainability standards that safeguard against these risks.
- Just 14% state that ocean sustainability is incorporated into investment decision-making, and none expect investee companies to obtain or support relevant sustainability standards to safeguard against these risks
Based on the above and other key findings, it is evident that even the asset management sector's leading lights on RI must build on their commitments to address issues like climate change. They can do this by taking a more systematic and science-based approach to integrating natural capital risks into investment decisions, which must involve setting portfolio-level targets on sustainability that are forward-looking, science-based, and time-bound.
Brian Rice, Portfolio Manager at CalSTRS, said "We expect our external asset managers to be integrating ESG analysis into investment decision-making. Included in this analysis is addressing natural capital risk exposure. WWF's recently launched RESPOND framework and tool provide new perspectives into natural capital risk that can be used to help inform asset managers' decision making."
The findings highlight the urgency with which other asset managers, especially those investing in Asia, must enhance their RI capabilities in order to position themselves competitively. To remain eligible for mandates and meet stakeholder expectations, it will also be essential for asset managers to enhance the transparency of their reporting.
About RESPOND
RESPOND (Resilient and Sustainable Portfolios that Protect Nature and Drive Decarbonization) is an interactive online tool developed by WWF to help asset managers improve portfolio resilience and alignment with a low carbon and sustainable future through the application of science-based approaches to responsible investment (RI). The tool allows users to explore how leading asset managers are implementing RI and also understand opportunities for further leadership. It is based on a WWF framework that represents a best-practice architecture for responsible investment and is aligned with the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) and the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI).
This year's RESPOND analysis is based on a WWF-led review of 22 leading asset managers' English language public disclosures, released before 31 October 2019. Materials reviewed as a part of this analysis include the latest annual/sustainability/RI reports, public statements, investor presentations, press releases, and other information posted on asset managers' websites, and PRI 2018 and 2019 Transparency reports. By using only publicly available information, RESPOND highlights the baseline level of information available to international asset owners, regulators and stakeholders seeking to understand how asset managers are addressing ESG risks and opportunities. Ahead of RESPOND's launch, each asset manager included in the analysis was given the opportunity to review their preliminary results and provide feedback.
For more information please contact:
Lilian Gikandi, Media Officer, WWF International, Email: lgikandi@wwfint.org +254 725 577 438
[1] Criteria for inclusion in the 2019 analysis were three-fold: a) asset managers with a minimum AUM of $200B, headquartered in Europe; b) asset managers that disclosed receiving a rating of A+ on either the Strategy & Governance or Listed Equity modules of the PRI Reporting Framework in 2018 or 2019; and c) asset managers with a presence in Asia. Full details and rationale available here.
Key Findings
Light Blue: Range (min and max) for percentage of sub-indicators disclosed, by pillar
Dark Blue: Average percentage disclosure by pillar
Key Findings
Light Blue: Range (min and max) for percentage of sub-indicators disclosed, by pillarDark Blue: Average percentage disclosure by pillar
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