Vietnam is making efforts to transform the forestry sector towards multi-value, not only exploiting timber but also focusing on biodiversity conservation and developing carbon credits. However, it requires the cooperation of the community and appropriate support policies.
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| There needs to be a policy to encourage environmental protection and develop the carbon credit market. |
The forestry industry contributes greatly to the national economy.
According to Mr. Tran Quang Bao, Director of the Department of Forestry and Forest Protection (Ministry of Agriculture and Environment), the area of land planned for forestry nationwide is currently 15.8 million hectares, of which 14.8 million hectares are forested, accounting for more than 93%. Notably, nearly 8 million hectares are production forest land, effectively serving the forest products processing industry.
Economically, the forestry sector has made a strong transformation, increasing added value in the production chain. The value of forestry production has grown steadily at 4.7% per year. The productivity and quality of planted forests have been improved, providing more than 70% of wood materials for processing, serving export and domestic consumption. In 2024, the export value of wood and forest products will reach over 17.2 billion USD, with an estimated trade surplus of about 14.4 billion USD. In the first two months of 2025 alone, this figure reached 2.52 billion USD, an increase of 12.4% over the same period last year.
Mr. Bao proposed adding revenue from forest environmental services (about 3,000 billion VND/year) to the industry's production value, to fully reflect the contribution of forestry to the socio-economy. This revenue is considered an important resource for reinvestment, improving forest quality and supporting communities living near forests.
However, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Environment Nguyen Quoc Tri admitted that many forest protection and development projects have not received adequate investment. The main reason is that the forestry production and business cycle is long and risky, making capital sources unsustainable. Although protecting and restoring natural forests and conserving biodiversity is costly, economic benefits are difficult to recover in the short term.
Deputy Minister Nguyen Quoc Tri also pointed out that forestry planning is often affected by other planning such as transportation, infrastructure and economy, causing difficulties in management. The current forest support policy system is still scattered and prone to overlap. To overcome this, the industry has promoted decentralization and delegation of power to localities, creating flexibility in implementation. However, high-quality human resources and poor infrastructure are still barriers that need strong investment.
Currently, the country has about 1.2 million forest owners, of which 2,000 forest owners (mainly state-owned companies) account for 50% of the total forest area. In some areas, forest owners are individuals living alongside state forest owners, making it difficult to change the farming practices of 20 million people living in the buffer zones of the forests.
Forestry industry towards sustainable development, multi-value
According to statistics from the Department of Forestry and Forest Protection, Vietnam currently has 15.8 million hectares of planned forestry land, of which 14.8 million hectares have been covered by forests (accounting for more than 93%). Of this, nearly 8 million hectares are production forests. With an average growth rate of production value of 4.7% per year, the contribution of the forestry sector will continue to increase significantly in the next few years.
At a recent working session with the Department of Forestry and Forestry, Minister of Agriculture and Environment Do Duc Duy emphasized: “Developing forestry into a sustainable, multi-purpose economic sector is what we need to aim for. Forestry is not only about economic development but also about environmental protection, ecological conservation and sustainable development.”
He also mentioned the potential of carbon credits - a valuable resource of Vietnam and predicted that this will become a powerful tool in international negotiations.
Mr. Do Duc Duy said that the current forest protection contract for each household is too low, making it difficult to ensure livelihoods and create motivation for people to stay committed to the industry. This is also one of the major barriers in building new rural areas in mountainous areas, remote areas and nature reserves.
Minister Do Duc Duy has proposed a forestry development orientation towards “multi-value, multi-objective”, focusing on 4 main groups of tasks: The Ministry will review and complete legal documents, resolving the overlap between forest management and areas such as land and biodiversity conservation. In 2024, the Ministry has advised the Government to issue many decrees to remove difficulties for localities, especially in converting forest use purposes.
In addition to timber exploitation, the Minister encouraged the development of economic models under the forest canopy, ecotourism and conservation. He emphasized the role of carbon credits as a future international negotiation tool, and called for increased communication and public awareness of the diverse value of forests.
Mr. Do Duc Duy requested to promote the application of science and technology in forest management, protection and disaster response. The pilot issuance of forest planting area codes in 10 provinces in 2024 has brought positive results, creating a premise for building a nationwide forest planting database system and tracing the origin of wood.
Deputy Minister Nguyen Quoc Tri admitted that investment capital for forest development is still unsustainable due to long production cycles and many risks. Projects to protect natural forests, improve forest quality and conserve biodiversity require large costs but short-term economic benefits are unclear.
Minister Do Duc Duy called for research on policies to encourage environmental protection, develop carbon credit markets and improve treatment for forestry workers.
“The current forest protection contract is too low, making it difficult to ensure people’s livelihoods. This is a major obstacle to building new rural areas in remote areas,” added Mr. Do Duc Duy.
Source: https://thoibaonganhang.vn/lam-nghiep-viet-nam-chuyen-minh-manh-me-theo-huong-xanh-va-ben-vung-161248.html
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