Many areas of Vietnam are under protection. While the national reserves cover small areas of scientific significance with restricted access, the national parks also cover wetlands of Ramsar designated areas and BirdLife International inscribed bird areas. The largest of the national parks initially covered were the Cúc Phương National Park, the Cát Tiên National Park, and the Côn Đảo National Park which to start with were forest areas cum reserves or prohibited areas. The objective for creating national parks was to allow access to the reserved areas as a part of ecotourism and cultural needs with full attention to the basic approach of conservation of natural environmental resources.
The national parks and reserves, as per present status, (as reported by the National Parks of Vietnam) conforming to the topography of the country which cover terrestrial, deltas of rivers, and coastal zones are: Five national parks and four reserves in the Mekong Delta; two national parks in the northeastern area; five reserves in the north western area; three parks in the Red River Delta; two parks and one reserve in the North Central Coastal area; two reserves in South Central Coastal area; three parks and one reserve in Central Highlands; one park and one reserve in south eastern area.
Legislation
The earliest enabling law passed was the principal legal and regulatory framework for Special Use Forests in the 1986 Decision of the Minister of Forestry. Under the Decision 1171/QD of 1986, protected areas broadly categorized were: Category I: National Parks, Category II: Nature Reserves and Cultural, Historical and Environmental Areas. IUCN guidelines of 1978 formed the basic principle. In 1986 alone, seven National Parks, 49 Nature Reserves and 31 Cultural, Historical and Environment Areas came to be established. This activity was further boosted when, in 1999, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) decided to expand the area under protection from to . This decision led to drafting a legal act to cover: Category I - Ten National Parks covering an area of of IUCN Category II; Category II - 53 Nature Reserves to cover of IUCN Category III; Category III - 17 Species and Habitat Reserves covering (gazetted only in 2001) of IUCN Category IV; and Category IV - 21 Landscape Protected Areas to encompass of IUCN Category V.
Under the January 2001 new regulation, Decision No. 08/QD-TTg, Article 7 of Decision 08/2001 for the management of Special Use Forests (further elaborations have been defined) three sub-zones have been spelt out. These are; strictly protected; ecological rehabilitation areas; and service and administrative – the last sub-zone has provision for not only management specific facilities but also envisages research facilities, tourism, recreation facilities, and entertainment aspects.
Having signed the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) also known as Washington Convention and the Cartagena Protocol, Vietnam has made changes in its laws and regulations from time to time to keep pace with the changing scenario of wildlife trade practices.
National Parks
Cúc Phương National Park
Cúc Phương National Park covers an area of and encompasses Ninh Bình Province, Hòa Bình Province and Thanh Hóa Province. It was established in 1982. It is located in the foothills of the northern Annamite Mountains. Flora in the park includes multi-layered canopy of trees which rise up to height and flowers, including orchids, ferns with tall leaves. The fauna consists of 97 species of mammals (including notable endangered langurs), 300 species of birds, 36 reptilian species, 17 species of amphibians, 11 species of fish, 2,000 species of vascular plants, and thousands of species of insects. Remnants of 12,000 years old prehistoric man have been discovered in the caves, and also fossilised marine reptiles (the first of its kind in Vietnam)
Yok Đôn National Park
Yok Đôn National Park was established in 1988. It covers an area of and is in Đắk Lắk Province. Vegetation in the park consists of deciduous forest and semi-evergreen (mixed deciduous) forest, with smaller areas of evergreen forest, particularly on hills and along watercourses. 474 vascular plant species have been recorded in the park. Globally endangered species such as Indochinese tiger, leopard, Asian elephant and gaur are also reported. Wild elephants are tamed here, which is tourist attraction.