earticle

영어

The Government of Vietnam considers forests to be an important ecological resource, valuable for the socio-economic development and well-being of the community in the country. Forests play an important role in adapting to climate change through environmental functions such as preventing erosion and ensuring water circulation. Forest and non-timber forest products are also important sources of nutrients. Forests also have a social role, contributing to the creation of jobs and income. The objective of this paper is to analyze changes in forest resources and policy of forestry in Vietnam. Currently there are about 25 million Vietnamese people with 20%-40% of their annual income coming from forests. The role of forests is also shown in remote, mountainous areas where 10% of the population living in or near forests (approximately 12 million hectares) are poor or ethnic minorities. Maintaining and increasing forest cover is identified as a way to ensure sustainable development in Vietnam's national strategy. Since 1995, Vietnam's forest cover has tended to recover after decades of decline due to war and exploitation of forest products for economic growth. Although there is still much debate about the quality of the remaining and new forests, the current forest cover statistics are generally very positive. In the last few years, forest cover has increased at an average rate of more than 73,000 ha/year and reached about 14.7 million ha in 2021, the coverage rate is 42.02%. Vietnam's forest growth is considered the result of synchronous economic and political solutions to cope with forest decline, land scarcity, and the impact of economic and market development. However, the strategic forest management plan has difficulties related to conflicts of land claims and border disputes due to the value of established forests. Inadequacies in management and lack of monitoring and enforcement are considered as one of the important factors causing deforestation and forest degradation. An estimated 43% of forests in Vietnam are lost due to deforestation to convert to industrial crops.