Silvicultural Characteristics Of Dipterocarpus Rensus In Thai Nguyen Province, Vietnam

Dipterocarpus rensus, a long-exploited species in Thai Nguyen Province, Vietnam, is currently documented with only 244 individuals observed across scattered locations within strictly protected natural forests. This study aimed to elucidate the distribution and silvicultural characteristics of D. rensus in Thai Nguyen, providing essential insights for the conservation and sustainable development of its genetic resources. Our findings underscore a sparse population of D. rensus in Thai Nguyen, primarily concentrated within National Parks and Conservation Areas. The species composition formula for the natural distribution of D. rensus encompasses diverse tree species, including Broussonetia papyrifera, Allospondias lakonensis Pierre, Choerospondias axillaris, Fagus sylvatica, Machilus velutina Champ, Canarium album, Engelhardtia chrysolepis, Peltophorum dasyrhachis, Alangium chinense, Vatica odorata, Duabanga grandiflora, Sargentodoxa cuneata, Amesiodendron chinense, and Nephelium chryseum. The regenerative seedling composition is dominated by pioneer, fast-growing species such as Broussonetia papyrifera, Allospondias lakonensis Pierre, Fagus sylvatica, Machilus velutina Champ, Zenia insignis, Engelhardtia chrysolepis, Archidendron clypearia, Pterospermum acerifolium Willd, Bischofia javanica, Vatica odorata, Duabanga grandiflora, Sargentodoxa cuneata, Broussonetia papyrifera, Aesculus assamica, and Amesiodendron chinense. The study highlights the poor regeneration ability of D. rensus, emphasizing the necessity for research on cultivation techniques to effectively conserve and harness the genetic resources of this valuable species

Persistence probability of a random polynomial arising from evolutionary game theory

In this paper, we obtain an asymptotic formula for the persistence probability in the positive real line of a random polynomial arising from evolutionary game theory. It corresponds to the probability that a multi-player two-strategy random evolutionary game has no internal equilibria. The key ingredient is to approximate the sequence of random polynomials indexed by their degrees by an appropriate centered stationary Gaussian process.Comment: revised versio

Improving the livelihood of small farmers in the pig value chain: Experiences in the north of Vietnam

Livestock sector in general and pig production in particular are important in Vietnam not only for supplying food for its growing population but also for their significant contributions to the country’s economy. Smallholder pig producers which are common, are estimated to supply at least 80% of pork in total pork production in the country. The paper airms to draw a picture of pig production performance of small farmers based on the survey data of ILRI-VNUA and value chain approach. It is believed that pig smallholders in Vietnam perform a weak market orientation, and they do not have full information about market. Therefore, some implications should be as small pig farmers need facilitation from the government and training & improving veterinary network are needed; Government management on input and output markets should be strengthened effectively; The private sector should participate actively in the chains; and Awareness of food safety of people should be improved

An evaluation of economic viability of small scale slaughterhouses in Vietnam: Implication for pig value chain development

Slaughterhouse plays important role in pig value chain in Vietnam, not only for the functions it plays and economic added value it generates, but also for product quality relates to food safety standards that is much affected under slaughtering activity. The study is aimed to get a better understanding of structure, conduct, performance and economic viability of small scale slaughter houses in the pig value chain, and draw key implications for pig value chain development in Vietnam. Nghe An and Hung Yen are selected as study site. Data is collected from 51 small scale slaughterhouses in 18 communes. Descriptive and comparative statistics are employed with t-test for mean comparison. Results show that slaughterhouse plays multiple functions in the pig value chain, generate permanent jobs for at least 2 family labors, and provides an income of about 18 USD/working day for family labor, contributing about threefourths of total family income. Slaughtering activity generates an added value of 165 USD/one ton of live pig, accounting from 24%-44% total value added in the pig value chain. Upstream and downstream linkages of slaughterhouses in the chain are quite loose with no formal contract. The majority of small scale slaughterhouses do not meet the standards for pig slaughterhouse as required by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. The setting up as well as slaughtering practices are perceived to contribute to exposure of meat to contamination that could lead to higher incidence of salmonella in pork, a common cause of foodborne illness for consumers. Rising concerns of consumers about food safety as well as increasing level of economic integration of Vietnam are factors potentially having great impacts on economic viability of small scale slaughterhouse in Vietnam. Several recommendations for upgrading slaughterhouse are proposed accordingly

Greenhouse gas emissions from piggery and biogas digesters in the Red River Delta of Vietnam

High demand for pork consumption in Vietnam has led to a shift of pig production systems from smallholder to industrial-scale farms, particularly in the Red River Delta. This production intensification also produces massive manure and urine quantities, leading to water, air, and soil pollution. The use of biogas plants has been seen as efficient to achieve in the same time a decrease in pollution, and a provision of biogas resources and bio-organic fertilizers. However, increasing pig head density has been causing great pressure on biogas digesters, as their size is not big enough for treatments anymore. Inappropriate utilization and management of biogas digesters can not only cause losses from pig wastes, but also contributes to increase greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions such as carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O). This case study aims to identify the role and contributions of biogas digesters to better manage the sources of GHG emissions from pig wastes for different types of pig farms. Four provinces of the Red River Delta were selected to test the pig waste management efficiency of biogas digesters and measure GHG emissions from these systems. The findings show that CO2, CH4 and N2O emission rates from pig manure are at least twice as much what is allowed under the Vietnam national technical regulation on ambient air quality. However, the GHGs emission rate does not significantly differ between smallholder and industrial-scale farms in the four surveyed provinces. Sampling position (between inside piggeries and outside the outlet of biogas digesters) did not affect significantly GHG emissions rate. These results confirm that the pig waste management of biogas digesters for both smallholder and industrial-scale pig farms is not efficient and that efforts need to be invested to mitigate GHG emissions in pig production. Reducing pig density per piggery is highly recommended. The modification of biogas digester structure to separate solid pig manure and urine should also be considered. Otherwise, the application of other alternative aerobic or anaerobic digestion technologies should also be encouraged and promoted. Biogas digesters in pig production have a significant role to play in Vietnam government’s mitigation strategies, as well as from the perspective of biosafety and animal husbandry policies

Prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus in eastern and southeastern Asia: A systematic review and meta-analysis

This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Aim. To review the prevalence of gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) in Eastern and Southeastern Asia. Methods. We systematically searched for observational studies on GDM prevalence from January 2000 to December 2016. Inclusion criteria were original English papers, with full texts published in peer-reviewed journals. The quality of included studies was evaluated using the guidelines of the National Health and Medical Research Council, Australia. Fixed effects and random effects models were used to estimate the summary prevalence of GDM and the corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results. A total of 4415 papers were screened, and 48 studies with 63 GDM prevalence observations were included in the final review. The pooled prevalence of GDM was 10.1% (95% CI: 6.5%–15.7%), despite substantial variations across nations. The prevalence of GDM in lower- or upper-middle income countries was about 64% higher than in their high-income counterparts. Moreover, the one-step screening method was twice more likely to be used in diagnosing GDM when compared to the two-step screening procedure. Conclusions. The prevalence of GDM in Eastern and Southeastern Asia was high and varied among and within countries. There is a need for international uniformity in screening strategies and diagnostic criteria for GDM

Adaptation options for agricultural cultivation systems in the South Central Coast under the context of climate change: Assessment Report.

This report highlights the results of consultation meetings and field visits organized by the Department of Crop Production and the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security in Southeast Asia in association with the three offices of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development in the South Central Coast provinces of Binh Thuan, Ninh Thuan, and Khanh Hoa, in combination with consultation with the provinces in the conference: “Summing up crops production in the Winter-Spring season in 2018-2019, implementing the Summer-Autumn season, Main rice season in 2019 for the South Central Coast and the Central Highlands” held by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in Tam Ky City, Quang Nam Province on 12 April 2019. The meetings underlined the progress made by the provinces on climate change adaptation and mitigation, options for risk reductions in agricultural production, and conversion of crop structure as results of implementing the guidelines of the provinces and the Sector, especially, solutions for reservation and efficient and economic use of water under the context of climate change. This assessment report also reviews some issues related to the agricultural transformation of the region in adapting to risks caused by climate change. They are based on comparative advantages in terms of geographical location and market of key agricultural products. This report also points out shortcomings in using land and unreasonable points in managing and using important natural resources, especially water, and provides recommendations for the agricultural transformation and inter-regional connection with the Central Highlands and the Southeast. The team also introduces climate-related risks maps and adaptation plans (CS MAP) which is applied in the five provinces in the Mekong Delta Region, and hopes this solution’s expansion shall be supported by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the provinces