Conference calls on partners to support forestry industry
(VOV) - This year, the forestry industry will accelerate renovation of the forest management system particularly that of specialized and preventive forests, stop forest exploitation and combine forest protection and development with improvement of living conditions of planters and poverty reduction for people of ethnic minority groups.
Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Ha Cong Tuan emphasised at the annual meeting of the Forest Sector Support Partnership (FSSP) in Hanoi on February 4.
Tuan said climate change and international economic integration opens up a number of opportunities and challenges for the forestry industry. Vietnam’s fully engagement in and implementation of free trade agreements (FTAs) will help raise its credibility in the region and the world. However, it also causes risks for forest planters and small-and medium-sized timber export enterprises.
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In coming times, the sector will focus on development of forests with economic efficiency and improve the productivity, quality and value of each kind of forest, gradually supplying wood and other forest products for domestic consumption and exports.
This year, the sector aims to earn VND25 trillion in forestry production value, a growth of 7-7.2%, an export revenue of US$6.7 billion and forest coverage of 42%.
Addressing the event, Kirsten Hegener, co-chair of the FSSP, said the FSSP hopes to share more information about the sector’s restructuring activities, especially their impact on FSSP post-2015 activities.
Since its operation in Vietnam in 2000, the FSSP has assisted the forest sector in developing more than 40 legal documents, projects, programmes and local forestry networks as well as helped Vietnam access international initiatives.