An Analysis of Land Use Options using CLUMondo Model to Promote Agricultural Restructuring in the Mekong Delta’s Coastal Area in Vietnam

Background: Climate change, socioeconomic, market demands and labor restructuring have led to the need for agricultural restructuring in coastal areas in Vietnam. This study was conducted to assess the factors affecting agricultural production and analyze land use scenarios to support the agricultural transformation in the coastal area of the Vietnamese Mekong Delta. Methods: The implementation method is based on surveying the necessary dynamic level of socioeconomic and environmental factors affecting land use; the connection between the land area optimization using linear programming and the CLUMondo. Result: The results proposed 3 scenarios to improve the efficiency of state land management for socioeconomic development and agricultural restructuring in the study area. Scenario 1 (the land-allocated results were similar to the land use map) and scenario 2 (extensive shrimp farming areas in the coastal zone will be firmly converted to intensive shrimp farming) are suitable for the district in the short term. However, Scenario 3 (the shrimp-rice area tends to convert to rice land, while agricultural land near the town will be firmly converted to non-agricultural land) is the most appropriate option when funds are available for high technology advancement.