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The Social Forestry Development Project (SFDP) Song Da is a technical cooperation project between the Governments of Vietnam and Germany, executed by the Department of Forestry Development of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) and supported by the German Technical Cooperation Agency (GTZ). The project area is located in the Song Da (Black River) watershed in the Northwest of Vietnam (2,6 million ha). The project pilot areas is in predominantly Thai inhabited Son La province and Hmong inhabited Lai Chau province. These ethnic groups represent almost 65% of a total population of over 3.2 million people in the watershed. The project goal is that "the living conditions of the local population in the Song Da region are improved in accord with a stabilization of the ecology". The project purpose is that "(rural) communities in Son La and Lai Chau provinces manage their natural resources in an ecologically, economically and socially sustainable way". The logic behind the project’s approach is that the problem of deforestation can only be solved by addressing the main causes of deforestation: i.e. rural poverty and insufficient food production. Therefore the project follows a 2-way approach which leads to higher food production and cash income in a more sustainable manner and, secondly, to an increased forest cover through natural regeneration, plantation and forest management activities. The overall timeframe of the project is 12 years, from 1993 until 2004, divided into 4 phases. SFDP started in 1993 with a 2 years Orientation Phase, followed by a first Implementation Phase from April 1995 until December 1998. The 2nd phase covered the period from January 1999 until December 2001. A final hand-over phase is from January 2002 to December 2004.
 The strategy of the project to reach the project goal consists of the following main activities: - To assist in the development, refinement and application of a methodology for participatory land use planning and land allocation. This methodology will lead to a better definition of areas for agro-forestry production and protection, as well as to improved land tenure security for farm households and conditions for community-based management of natural resources.
- To strengthen the capacity of local communities (basically villages, but also communes) to manage their own natural resources as an efficient and cost-effective way to increase agro-forestry production and improve protection and management of their natural (forest) resources. Of particular importance are methods to increase the involvement of communities in analyzing existing problems and developing long-term solutions (Village Development Planning). Annual planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation are tools to assist them and the local authorities in a better targeting of activities and government services, like agro-forestry extension, forest plantation and protection.
- To develop improved technological and organizational options for sustainable natural resources management which are suitable for a very diverse mountainous environment, like the Song Da watershed, for increasing agro-forestry production and protecting forest, soil and water resources. Organizational options are covering especially methodologies for the improvement of forest protection and forest management.
- To develop and apply a concept for a needs-oriented agro-forestry extension service, in order to deliver the developed technological and organizational options to farm households and village level.
- To enhance the capacities of local institutions (management and planning, agro-forestry extension and forestry institutions) at district and provincial level to implement and promote land use planning and land allocation, village development planning, community forestry and extension. Of particular importance is the training of local staff at management and field level once a methodology is approved by the province. Structured training modules are designed to increase the effectiveness and quality of the services provided to the local population.
- To feed back field experiences into the provincial approval process and anchor it in provincial regulations. These provincial regulations can then be observed and evaluated by other provinces for adaptation to their situation. At the same time national level authorities consider these field activities in the drafting of new policies.
The project focuses on mainstreaming administrative procedures particularly in:  | Participatory land use planning and land allocation to households and groups of household and communities. | | Strengthen capacity of local communities for decentralized planning (village development planning). | | Improved technological and organizational options in forestry. Elaboration of Village Forest protection Regulations and Community Forest Management Planning | | Development of a needs-oriented agro-forestry extension service: . Participatory Agricultural Extension Methodology (PAEM) | | Enhanced capacity of local institutions is done in cooperation with the provincial vocational schools. | 
SFDP developed administrative procedures (methodologies) which can be differentiated into 10 steps as shown in the following graph: 
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