Delay in land and forest allocation in Dien Bien district

The working group assisting the Steering Committee of Dien Bien district inspected the work of land and forest allocation and granting of forestry land use right certificates in He Muong commune.

Muong Pon commune has a large area of forest and forestry land, but with the drastic participation of the commune government, especially with the consensus of the people and the consulting unit, Muong Pon is one of the few communes that has implemented land and forest allocation with positive results in the district. Of the total surveyed area of 5,433.08 hectares, the commune has measured 5,034.18 hectares. Of which, 1,612.26 hectares have been appraised and approved for land and forest allocation. The remaining area has been approved by the Commune People's Council and is in the process of taking the next steps.

Mr. Cha A Ta, Vice Chairman of Muong Pon Commune People's Committee, said: Although the results are positive, they have not yet met the plan assigned by the district. Because in the implementation of reviewing the GCNQSDÐ forestry land use rights in the commune, some areas under the planning of 3 types of forests that the consulting unit has re-planned are the people's rotational upland areas, they have not agreed. After being analyzed and explained the benefits when measuring ownership, allocating land, allocating forests, and issuing GCNQSDÐ forestry land use rights, some households agreed. However, according to the people's opinion, for some small forest areas mixed with rivers, streams and previous rotational upland production, they should be removed from the planning of 3 types of forests, because people want to keep them for stable use for agricultural production purposes.

Unlike Muong Pon commune, the work of granting land use right certificates in Muong Nha commune still faces many difficulties and obstacles. Up to now, the commune is implementing the measurement and announcing the measurement results, but has not yet completed the documents, maps, and land allocation plans for the areas that have completed the measurement work. The surveyed area that needs to be implemented in the commune is 5,182.73 hectares, 4,033.20 hectares have been measured, and 1,149.53 hectares have not been measured because the people do not agree. Currently, the commune does not have documents and areas to submit to the District People's Committee for consideration, approval of the plan and decision to grant land use right certificates. For the surveyed area without any problems, the consulting unit is completing the documents.

Mr. Lo Van Bien, Chairman of Muong Nha Commune People's Committee, said: During the implementation of field surveying in the villages, there were many disputes about land plot boundaries between households and individuals; boundaries between villages. Especially the forestry land of Muong Nha commune located within the administrative boundary of Na Tong commune has not been implemented. It is even more difficult when the land official who is responsible for advising the commune on this task is still studying. To ensure progress, Muong Nha commune has requested the District People's Committee to consider and create conditions to increase 1 land official to help the commune.

In Dien Bien district, 12 communes have completed the public posting of land and forest allocation plans and public posting of measured plots. The remaining communes are continuing to complete their documents and organize public postings. 6 communes: Muong Pon, Phu Luong, Na U, Pa Thom, Thanh Hung, He Muong are submitting their documents to the District People's Committee for appraisal and approval of land and forest allocation plans. 2 communes, Muong Pon and Phu Luong, have submitted their maps to the Department of Natural Resources and Environment for appraisal and signing.

Currently, in the process of implementing land and forest allocation, Dien Bien district still has some difficulties and obstacles leading to slow progress compared to the general requirements of the province. That is, many areas planned for allocation are fragmented, small, not contiguous regions or plots; some land plots are in dispute, forest owners have not yet agreed on the boundaries. Some arising problems are beyond the authority of the district People's Committee, so it is necessary to have time to seek opinions from higher-level agencies on: Areas within the scope of administrative boundary adjustment; forest areas outside the planning of 3 types of forests. Especially some users have household registration in other localities.

To ensure the province's overall progress to complete land and forest allocation by the end of 2023, Dien Bien district needs to step up propaganda, mobilization, and explanation work to create consensus among the people. The District's Steering Committee for Land and Forest Allocation regularly monitors the situation and resolves difficulties at the grassroots level. For areas where difficulties and problems have been resolved, the district directs relevant units to increase human resources, speed up field measurement progress; complete documents, develop land and forest allocation plans for submission for appraisal and approval according to regulations.

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