Efficient Management of Natural Resources: A Way to Sustain Food Security in the Rainfed Sloping Lands of Northern VietnamT DLongauthorARamakrishnaauthorH MTamauthorN VVietauthorN TChinhauthorRainfed sloping lands occupy one-third area of northern Vietnam and are threatened with destruction of natural resource base due to improper land use practices. Current production practices are exacerbating soil loss and destruction of the natural habitat as the soils are deeply weathered, poor in nutrients, and highly vulnerable to erosion. These ecosystems have much lower carrying capacity and respond to crop intensification by rapid decline in productivity, even total collapse if not managed properly. Remoteness and inaccessibility, low biological productivity, environmental degradation, disease and health problems, population increase, and lack of a development paradigm tailored to the special conditions are the key constraints for development. Sustainable farming on these lands in the perspective of a seriously deteriorated ecology and environment is not an easy task. Proper understanding of constraints and development of appropriate technologies with focus on soil, water, and nutrient management help optimize food production and combat resource degradation. Research and application of watershed based integrated natural resource management technologies offered excellent opportunities for crop diversification to meet market orientation, sustaining food production at higher levels, improving soil health, recharge of aquifers, and enhancing household incomes for better rural livelihoods in the sloping land ecoregions of northern VietnamWatershed Management2001Conference or Workshop Item