Enhancing coastal resilience through mangrove restoration in aquaculture areas in Ca Mau Province

To address these challenges, IUCN is implementing the project Scaling up NbS through mangrove restoration in Ca Mau Province started in October 2023 with funding from Hyundai Motor Company (HMC) and Good Neighbors International (GNI). The project aims to establish integrated mangroves shrimp farms by planting 160,000 mangroves trees, to support forest friendly aquaculture practices, and demonstrate the application of OECM to recognize conservation outcomes in aquaculture landscapes. The project’s outputs in terms of ecological restoration, local livelihoods, and national climate adaptation goals are aligned with HMC’s global CSR initiative “IONIQ Forest,” which targets planting one million trees worldwide to combat climate change and promote sustainable development.

Between 29 June and 15 July 2025, more than 80,000 mangrove trees were planted across 18 hectares in Hoa Binh District; the rest will be planted in 2026. Planting sites include mangrove-shrimp ponds and coastal protection forests at high erosion risk. The primary species is Rhizophora mucronata (locally known as Đưng), a mangrove species well-suited to brackish coastal conditions, with a robust stilt-root system that effectively traps sediment and stabilizes shorelines. 

A local farmer was planting young mangroves trees in the project site © HMC/GNI

The project is coordinated by the Management Board of Special-Use and Coastal Protection Forests under the Department of Agriculture and Environment (DAE). Ca Mau DAE provides administrative and technical oversight to ensure alignment with provincial land use plans. IUCN provides technical assistance and applies best practices in mangrove reforestation while promoting community participation. Households are not only involved in the planting process but also in caring, protecting, and monitoring the newly restored mangroves. 

The 80,000 newly planted mangroves should deliver both environmental and socio-economic benefits. Environmentally, the forests will increase shrimp farming resilience by acting as natural filters to improve water quality and by providing structurally complex habitats to support aquatic biodiversity. Increased forest coverage will increase carbon sequestration, mitigate climate change and reduce coastal erosion. Socially, the project will improve the livelihoods of 23 households by rehabilitating mangroves, providing shrimp seed stock, and training on integrated mangrove-aquaculture. These interventions will stabilize shrimp yields, lower disease risks, reduce water treatment costs, and ultimately enhance productivity and income stability.

IONIQ Forest is an important pilot to demonstrate the effectiveness of integrating mangrove restoration with aquaculture, a nature-based and circular economic approach. It provides a foundation to replicate NbS in other coastal areas in the Mekong Delta facing similar climate- and human-induced pressures.

Transporting seedlings to planting area © HMC/GNI