Code red for wildlife

The country’s biodiversity status has changed a lot because of its rapid social and economic development,” said Professor Thanh. “IUCN’s criteria for categorising species threatened status have also been changed. The revision of the book therefore adequately reflects the current biodiversity status of Vietnam.”

According to Doctor Vu Van Trieu, IUCN representative in Vietnam, the development of the Vietnam Red Data Book 2007 greatly contributes to the assessment of the current status as well as the future development forecast of Vietnam’s biodiversity.

“This information provides impetus for the finalising and implementation of Vietnam’s Biodiversity Law. We are glad that Vietnam is following the best international practices by conducting an up-to-date biodiversity assessment,” said Trieu. The Vietnam Red Data Book 2007 was developed over five years by a team of more than 70 scientists from 10 national and international organisations.

In addition to updating surveys and research as recent as 2005, the documentation development project also conducted a review of all contested references and organised consultative workshops to improve the document’s quality.