A turning point in forest protection and development

By 2025, the national forest coverage rate will reach 42.03%. Not only has the scale increased, but the quality of the forest has also improved significantly. Many models of large timber plantations and forests with FSC certification (certification of sustainable forest management, ensuring wood products have clear origins, are exploited responsibly and comply with environmental, social and economic standards) have been implemented in Quang Tri, Tuyen Quang... contributing to creating jobs and stable income for many households.

Revenue from forest environmental services reaches thousands of billions of VND each year, contributing to improving the livelihoods of people in forest areas; is a bright spot, affirming the program's "people-centered" approach; is an effective solution combining forest protection and sustainable livelihood development. Ecotourism and resort models in the forest are expanding, with revenue of more than 500 billion VND in 2024 alone.

In recent times, the forestry sector has also promoted public-private partnership (PPP) in management and forest protection. The Forestry Department has signed a number of cooperation programs with international organizations, enterprises, research institutes, etc. to transfer technology, improve management capacity, and expand the market for forest products. The average growth rate of the forestry sector's added value is 5%/year, and the export turnover of wood and forest products is an average of 16.2 billion USD/year, making Vietnam one of the five largest wood exporting countries in the world .

In the period of 2021 - 2025, the law on forest protection has been supplemented and gradually completed with a series of new legal documents: Decree on investment in forestry, development of medicinal plants, ecotourism, forestry seed management... Another important factor is that the work of inspection, supervision and handling of forest violations has been strengthened, helping to significantly reduce illegal logging and deforestation.

Through the above figures, it can be seen that the forestry sector has made a lot of efforts. But in reality, we also see that the problem of climate change is becoming more and more evident, the number of storms causing floods and landslides still occurs frequently, causing damage to people and property across the country. Therefore, the work of forest protection and development needs to make more efforts, not only to increase the forest area, cover bare hills with green; but also to focus on improving the quality and value of forests. We need more perennial forests, with the ability to withstand storms and natural disasters, to not only be the "green lungs" of nature, but also to perform well the function of "shields" to protect people's lives, retain water, prevent flash floods and landslides right from the source. We have changed our actions and thinking about forestry, from "protection" to "sustainable development"; from "resource exploitation" to "investment in ecological value"; Forests have been considered as “a resource for long-term development” and not just a state management task. In the new period, we need to protect forests in the direction of green economic development, environmental protection, and climate change response.

Source: https://baophapluat.vn/buoc-chuyen-minh-trong-bao-ve-phat-trien-rung.html