Improving the competitiveness of pig producers in an adjusting Vietnam market

The main aim of the project is to identify technology, policy, and forms of market institution or coordination that will allow smallholder pig producers to raise their incomes through better access to higher value market chains. This includes niche markets in the context of rising demand for products with specific quality attributes, and within the broader context of the changing dynamics of the pig sector arising from recent developments affecting Vietnam's participation in intra-regional trade.
In April to June the key project partners led by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and consisting of the Vietnamese partner, Center for Agricultural Policy (CAP) of the Institute for Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development, the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), the University of Queensland (UQ), and Oxfam, discussed project implementation issues. A wide audience of key stakeholders (e.g., policymakers, non-government organizations, researchers, pig producers, and donor agencies) were invited to the project inception workshop (22 June). In general the key stakeholders were supportive of the project. Outcome Mapping (OM) was also employed to elicit feedback from key stakeholders and partners about their expectations.
A policy advocacy and communication strategy for the project was developed. A key result was the formation of a Project Steering Committee comprising representatives from national and international organizations involved in the agriculture sector. The role of the Committee is to provide a forum for discussions about policy advocacy and communication strategies for the Project to ensure impacts.
A series of participatory rapid appraisal (PRA) surveys were undertaken during July to September 2007. The aim of these surveys was to provide a broad characterization of the existing pig supply chains and the key actors within the chain as well as insights from key informants on trends in supply of and demand for pigs and pork and the market conditions driving these trends. The results from PRA surveys highlighted the differences in market channels used and types of market actors involved in these channels by large and small pig producers. Key constraints to production and marketing were identified by pig producers using problem tree analysis. Perceptions about the degree of importance and sphere of influence of key institutions were also highlighted.
The first detailed survey to be implemented was the urban consumer survey; survey sites were Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. Primary respondents were households that were drawn from the sample of households that are participants in the Vietnam Household Living Standards Surveys (VHLSS). Some 270 households in Hanoi and 330 households in Ho Chi Minh City were randomly selected from wards that were located in inner and outer areas of each city to capture variation in socio-demographic characteristics particularly income; selection of wards was based on distance to urban center of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. The surveys were implemented by the provincial statistical departments of the General Statistics Office in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. The surveys were completed by end of December 2007. Meanwhile, CAP had contracted the General Statistics Office (GSO) in Hanoi for the data entry tasks that were completed in March 2008 during which time the consumer survey dataset was ready for analysis.
Pre-testing of the producer survey questionnaires were completed in early March 2008. As of the end of this reporting period, producer surveys in four provinces (Nghe An, Phu Tho, Dak Lak, and Tien Giang) are underway. Full completion of the producer surveys is anticipated in May 2008 and will be reported in detail in next year's annual project report.
With a few exceptions, the activities and progress planned for the reported period (Year 1) were successfully achieved with the implementation of the inception workshop, OM workshop and stakeholder discussions, rapid appraisal preceding detailed surveys, and two major detailed surveys on consumers and producers. We experienced minor delays in initiating certain activities (e.g., producer surveys) causing these to spill over into the second year but these are expected to be completed early in Year 2 and do not adversely affect the timing of the remaining activities. The project team has also expanded with the participation of Oxfam HK and Prosperity Initiative (PI). Linkages with other livestock related initiatives, e.g., the Livestock Competitiveness and Food Safety Project (LIFSAP) of the World Bank and the policy outreach activities of FAO's Pro-Poor Livestock Policy Facility Initiative (FAO-PPLPI) have been made to facilitate a pathway for uptake of project outputs for impacts. Systematic efforts should be made to strengthen these linkages during the course of project implementation.