Influence of communication channels on forestry programs participation: Evidence from smallholders in Vietnam

Communication plays a pivotal role in enhancing rural households' engagement in forestry programs, yet its impacts have not been thoroughly explored. In this study, we examine the influence of communication channels on the participation decisions of 300 randomly sampled households across 30 communities in Thanh Hoa Province, Vietnam. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data on communication aspects, household characteristics, socioeconomic status, institutional considerations, farm attributes, and biophysical factors. Logistic regression and Bayesian model averaging were utilized for data analysis. Our findings revealed that government-led formal communication channels were more influential in increasing forestry participation than informal farmer-to-farmer communication. Further, information on forestry programs, planting knowledge, forest area, formal communication channels, and household wealth ranking jointly predicted landholders' participation decisions. As for policy interventions, we suggested improving transparency and monitoring of formal communication channels, extending educational outreach initiatives, and utilizing informal networks to disseminate technical information/supports to local households. Implementing tailored support instruments for resource-constrained households is further recommended. Collectively, our study offers a foundation for understanding communication's role in forestry program participation, contributing to the development of context-tailored strategies to enhance the efficacy and socioeconomic viability of forestry development projects in rural Vietnam.