On the afternoon of February 7, 2023, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, in cooperation with the People’s Committee of Ninh Binh Province and the Forestry Project Management Board in Con Noi Region, Kim Son District, Ninh Binh Province, held the afforestation ceremony as part of the Red River Delta mangrove restoration and sustainable management project funded by the Korean government through the Korea Forest Service (KFS).

COASTAL FOREST RECREATION

Deputy Minister of Forestry of Korea Sang-seop Lim reiterated at the ceremony, “Afforestation, mangrove restoration combined with extensive management under the mangrove canopy is the first cooperation project between the two agencies of the two countries in the forest sector.

In addition to the propaganda to prevent deforestation and increase the area of ​​planted forests, the project’s aquaculture support will help improve the livelihoods of people in the relevant areas.

The total capital for the project is more than USD 4.3 million, of which the non-repayable aid from the Korean government through the Korean Forestry Agency is approximately USD 3.8 million, equivalent to over VND 89 billion; the rest is Vietnam’s counterpart capital. The KFS project will be implemented in the two provinces of Nam Dinh and Ninh Binh, which was previously started in Nam Dinh province in mid-2022.

The project will focus on 3 main themes: Financial support for mangrove restoration and sustainable management; Investing in a more effective management mechanism through activities supporting sustainable aquaculture related to mangroves; Diversifying the long-term benefits from mangrove protection and management by supporting sustainable livelihoods.

According to the Management Board of Forestry Projects (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development), the total area of ​​Vietnam’s coastal forests is currently about 454,000 hectares. Although coastal forests account for only about 3% of the total national forest area, they play an important role in maintaining ecological balance, preserving biodiversity, preventing waves and winds, limiting coastal erosion, etc., and protecting the sea dike.

In recent times, Vietnam’s forest cover has remained stable at around 42%, but coastal forests have been degraded. Mangroves in Vietnam have declined by almost a third, from 408,500 ha in 1943 to just over 270,000 ha today.

In many parts of Vietnam, coastal forests have been converted into unsustainably profitable short-term activities, while mangrove restoration is extremely difficult and complex.

GREAT FRIENDS OF WOOD AND FOREST PRODUCTS

Earlier, on the afternoon of February 6, 2023, Vice Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Mr. Nguyen Quoc Tri received and worked with Vice Minister Lim Sang Seop.

Deputy Minister Lim Sang Seop said the field of responding to climate change and protecting forest resources is a global issue that requires cooperation from many countries. Korea operates an indexed, digitized forest resource management system in the Forest Management System, which is continuously updated every 5 years.

In addition to basic information, this system also contains indicators for soil samples, soil temperature, etc., which are used for forest fire management, monitoring and direct monitoring of forests.

Korea in particular has been very interested in forest protection and minimizing damage from forest fires lately, so the issues of digitization, application of modern technology in forest protection, application of drone technology (the drones), artificial intelligence and helicopter forest surveillance come into play.

The Vice Minister of Forestry of Korea suggested that the two sides concretize cooperation programs by 2024, when the “Restoration and Management of Mangrove Forests in the Red River Delta” project enters Phase 2.

In addition, Mr. Lim suggested that Vietnam should actively participate in the Korea-Mekong Forestry Cooperation Center (KMFCC) alongside members from Southeast Asian countries such as Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar.

Mr. Bui Chinh Nghia, deputy director-general of the General Department of Forestry, said trade in forest products between Vietnam and Korea is growing very positively. In 2022, Vietnam’s export turnover of wood and wood products to the Korean market will reach US$1.03 billion.

In the structure of wood products and wood products exported to the Korean market, the group of wood products, boards, flooring and wood furniture are the two main export groups, accounting for a high 57% of the total export value of wood and wood products from Vietnam. In particular, Korea and Japan are the two main markets for Vietnam’s tablet exports.

In order to promote agricultural trade between the two countries in the new situation, Mr. Nghia suggested that the Korean side should continue to raise awareness of the two countries’ legal timber guarantee system, so that the two-way trade will be further consolidated and develop in the future.

“Korea and Vietnam signed a memorandum of understanding on forestry cooperation in 1999. The Korean side should review, evaluate and sign a new, more comprehensive cooperation agreement in the near future,” Nghia suggested.

Deputy Minister Nguyen Quoc Tri highly appreciated Korea’s support and coordination in forestry cooperation programs and projects with Vietnam in the past, typically the project “Restoration and Management of Mangrove Forests. Red River Delta Region” until 2022. These projects not only to develop the Vietnamese forestry, but also contribute to efforts to respond to and mitigate the effects of climate change.

Referring to the proposal to actively participate in the Korea-Mekong Forest Cooperation Center (KMFCC), Deputy Minister Nguyen Quoc Tri said the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development would soon issue a statement on effective participation. The Vietnamese side will task the General Department of Forestry and related agencies to launch a cooperation program with many content such as forest protection, digital transformation, carbon credits, REDD+…