Green forests provide livelihoods for villages.

Implementing the policy of payment for forest environmental services, the Regional Branch V of the Song Ma - Sop Cop area, under the Provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund, always ensures that payments are made to the correct recipients, creating stable livelihoods for the people, contributing to supporting the construction of new rural areas, and aiming towards the goal of "Greener forests, more livelihoods for villages".

The planted forests of the people of Tay Ho village, Song Ma commune, are thriving thanks to the Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) policy.

In December, the peak of the dry season, we had the opportunity to join the forest patrol team of Púng Hày village, Huổi Một commune, on a forest patrol. From early morning, 12 members of the team, selected from the youth and militia forces who are healthy and familiar with the area, were present to set off on their forest patrol duty. From the highest point of the village, their eyes swept across the green forests covering the mountain slopes. Experience showed that from this vantage point, they could detect any unusual signs early and take the quickest action.

Lo Van Hong, a member of the team, informed: "Our team is responsible for regular patrols, proactively developing fire prevention and control plans, and clearing firebreaks. We are always ready, working day and night. As soon as we detect any unusual signs, we immediately go into the forest to investigate, resolutely preventing strangers from encroaching on the forest and engaging in illegal logging."

Welcoming us back after our forest patrol, Mr. Luong Van Thoa, Party Secretary and Head of the village, shared: Pung Hay village, Huoi Mot commune, is entrusted with protecting over 700 hectares of forest. To proactively protect the existing forest area, the village has implemented solutions suitable to the local characteristics, including combining propaganda work and raising people's awareness of forest patrol and protection. Every year, the village management board organizes meetings with the villagers, develops forest protection regulations, and incorporates them into the village's customs and traditions; it also establishes and maintains a forest patrol team. 100% of households in the village sign commitments to strictly abide by regulations on slash-and-burn farming to prevent fires from spreading into the forest. Thanks to this, for over 20 years, the village's forest has thrived and there have been no forest fires.

The forest patrol team of Púng Hày village, Huổi Một commune, is patrolling and protecting the forest.

In 2025, Púng Hày village received 180 million VND in forest environmental service fees. The village allocated a portion of this money to support the patrol team and those directly involved in forest protection. The majority of the remaining funds were invested in repairing, upgrading, and constructing new community welfare facilities. Last year, the village allocated over 100 million VND to pave rural roads with concrete, install a security camera system at the village cultural center, and invest in solar-powered streetlights.

Located on a high hilltop, the nearly 1-hectare cypress forest belonging to Mr. Tong Van Xuan's family in Tay Ho village provides shade and overlooks the center of Song Ma commune. Mr. Xuan shared: "Since 1994, after being encouraged and persuaded, my family started planting cypress trees to both protect the land and green the barren hills. Initially, I planted the forest hoping to preserve the soil and prevent landslides, but later, when the policy of paying for forest environmental services was implemented, my family gained additional income. The amount received, although not very large, is a very meaningful source of encouragement for my family."

The effectiveness of forest protection work in Púng Hày, Tây Hồ village, also reflects the results of forest protection work in the Sông Mã and Sốp Cộp areas. By the end of 2024, the total area of ​​forest eligible for ecosystem services in these communes reached over 85,458 hectares, benefiting 7,569 forest owners, including communities, individuals, household groups, villages, and communes. The Regional Branch V has closely coordinated with the Forest Ranger Stations in the area, local authorities, and consulting units to review and update the current forest status map. They conducted inspections of 22 communities in 6 key communes; promptly addressed requests from forest owners; and completed the determination of revenue-generating areas for 2024 on schedule.

The forest area has been leased to the community of Púng Hày village, Huổi Một commune.

Thanks to a rigorous review process, the payment of forest environmental service fees is carried out openly and transparently under the supervision of the Fund Management Council, relevant agencies, the supervisory councils of communes and villages, and the people. In 2025, the Branch disbursed over 24.6 billion VND, achieving a disbursement rate of 99.9%, with the main payment method being direct bank transfers to the accounts of forest owners. Ms. Le Thi Thao, Head of Branch Area V, said: "The villages have learned how to manage, record, and use the money for the right purposes, serving the community effectively. The awareness, consciousness, and responsibility of Party committees, authorities from the commune to the villages, and the people in forest protection and development have been raised, resulting in better forest protection; the community forest protection teams have been strengthened and equipped with adequate personal protective equipment, patrol tools, and fire prevention and control equipment."

The effective, open, and transparent implementation of DVMTR payments by the Regional Branch V has strengthened public trust, helping this policy truly become a stable livelihood solution, contributing to promoting economic development alongside sustainable environmental protection.

Source: https://baosonla.vn/xa-hoi/rung-xanh-ban-lang-them-sinh-ke-7dNXdNMvg.html