Negotiating changing livelihoods: The sampan dwellers of Tam Giang Lagoon, Việt Nam

Central Việt Nam is one of the most vulnerable areas in the country to natural disasters. In 1985 a major typhoon hit the Tam Giang Lagoon coastal area in the province of Thừa Tiên-Huế, Central Việt Nam, with severe impacts on the sampan dwellers who lived there on boats and fished for their livelihoods. Since then, the government has attempted to resettle them on land in order to decrease their vulnerability to such events. Consequently, this process has changed the livelihood options as well as the social networks of the sampan dwellers. This study of the resettlement village of Thụy Điển analyses the social networks and different forms of social capital being utilised by the resettled sampan dwellers as part of their changing livelihoods and questions whether the social capital formed will indeed lead to a long term decrease in vulnerability. It is found that while bonding and linking social capital have been newly formed, the trust required for bridging social capital formation is still missing, and this in turn is hindering the possibilities of sustainable livelihood formation.