There is great potential, but many challenges remain.

As of October 2023, Thanh Hoa province had collected over 162 billion VND from the ERPA program. This amount has contributed to increasing the income of forest owners assigned to manage and protect forests, while also motivating them to remain committed to protecting their homeland's forests. However, the disbursement and effective use of payments from the ERPA program are facing many obstacles that need to be addressed...

Officials from the Xuan Lien Nature Reserve Management Board are implementing operational measures to inspect the forest. Photo: Dinh Giang

Expectations from the ERPA Program

Thanh Hoa province has 647,473 hectares of forest, including 393,361 hectares of natural forest and 254,076 hectares of planted forest. According to Government Decree No. 107/2022/ND-CP dated December 28, 2022, on the pilot transfer of emission reduction results and financial management of greenhouse gas emission reduction payment agreements in the North Central region, the following payment support for forest protection is provided to organizations and individuals: livelihood support for communities living near forests and participating in forest protection; and funding for activities related to silvicultural measures, forest enrichment, forest enclosure, and supplementary reforestation.

The Xuan Lien Nature Reserve Management Board is the unit assigned to manage 24,728 hectares of land planned for forestry, including: 23,816 hectares of special-use forest; and 912 hectares of production forest. Following the 2023 payment notice, the unit received over 3 billion VND from the ERPA program. Mr. Ngo Xuan Thang, Deputy Director of the Xuan Lien Nature Reserve Management Board, expressed his expectations: “With the funds received from the ERPA program, the Xuan Lien Nature Reserve Management Board has planned to construct a forestry project, including the technical design and cost estimate for enriching the special-use forest in the Xuan Lien Nature Reserve, specifically in Zone 9, Sub-zone 500, within the special-use forest ecological restoration sub-zone. The project will contribute to supplementing and nurturing the restored natural special-use forest with native tree species, aiming to promote forest restoration, improve the quality and watershed protection capacity; conserve and enhance biodiversity and forest ecological environment; create jobs for workers; and raise awareness of forest protection among the people...”.

Mr. Le Dang Hai, head of the community forest protection team in Ngoc Thuong village, Luong Son commune (Thuong Xuan district), who is responsible for managing and protecting over 900 hectares of natural forest near the residential area, was very excited to hear that he would receive 50 million VND from the ERPA program. After discussion, the team members agreed to use the money to repair and replace the corrugated iron roof in front of the dilapidated Ngoc Thuong village cultural house.

The Muong Lat Protective Forest Management Board is responsible for managing 3,476 hectares of forest land, receiving over 459 million VND from the ERPA program. This amount is expected to be used for activities such as: supporting community participation in forest management; funding for communes with community involvement in forest management; and funding for silvicultural measures.

Mr. Nguyen Hoang Anh, Director of the Muong Lat Protective Forest Management Board, believes that funding from the ERPA program will significantly support agricultural and forestry extension activities, the supply of plant and animal breeds, and the construction of welfare facilities for local communities.

There are still many obstacles.

Despite expectations, the disbursement of funds from the ERPA program is currently facing numerous obstacles, causing confusion for local units. According to Mr. Ngo Xuan Thang, Deputy Director of the Xuan Lien Nature Reserve Management Board, "To date, payments from the 2023 ERPA program have not been disbursed to organizations and individuals involved in forest protection. The reason is that the transfer of funds from 2023 to 2024 for use, and the financial plan for the 2024 ERPA program, has not yet been approved by the competent authority."

Officials from the Xuan Lien Nature Reserve Management Board are implementing operational measures to inspect the forest.

According to statistics from the Forest Protection, Development and Disaster Prevention Fund Management Board under the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, for the period 2023-2025, Thanh Hoa province has over 393,000 hectares of natural forest receiving payments from the ERPA program in the North Central region. As of October 2023, revenue from ERPA payments exceeded 162 billion VND. However, only 46.5 billion VND has been disbursed to beneficiary organizations and individuals. Of this amount, over 23 billion VND has been paid to households and individuals assigned to protect the forests; disbursements to state-owned forest owners have not yet been made.

It has been learned that the reason for the delay in payments under the ERPA program is that the program was only implemented at the end of September 2023. After implementation, Thanh Hoa province reviewed the beneficiaries and approved the financial plan. Therefore, payments to forest owners were only made at the end of 2023, leading to delays in the forest owners' financial planning.

Furthermore, a large portion of the natural forest area in Thanh Hoa is currently funded by state-funded programs and projects for forest protection under contract. According to Government Decree 107/2022/ND-CP dated December 28, 2022, on the pilot transfer of emission reduction results and financial management of agreed payments for greenhouse gas emission reductions in the North Central region, funding from the ERPA program cannot overlap with state budget funding. This has created difficulties and obstacles for forest owners in determining the tasks and activities of the ERPA program.

According to Government Decree 107/2022/ND-CP, the disbursement of funds for the ERPA program is scheduled to end in 2025. However, the implementation process is facing difficulties and obstacles not only in Thanh Hoa but also in many other provinces in the North Central region. Therefore, consideration should be given to extending the ERPA program implementation period until the end of 2027.

Dinh Giang

Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/nguon-song-moi-cho-rung-bai-2-du-dia-lon-nhung-con-nhieu-kho-khan-230516.htm