Forest product exports are expected to rise in Vietnam to US$14.5 billion this year, up 12% against 2020. This was announced by the Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ha Cong Tuan, in an interview with the Lao Dong newspaper. Exports are likely to reach US$20 billion 2025. Source: Tropical Timber Market Report
Over the next five years efforts will be made to sustain the forest cover at 42%, expand markets, develop long-term trade partnerships and promptly address trade issues for mutual benefits in line with international commitments.
The minister mentioned that despite COVID-19 the timber industry had a good year. Vietnam exported forest products worth over US$13.22 billion, up 16.9% year on year almost 6% higher than targeted.
Vietnam ranks fifth globally, second in Asia, and first in Southeast Asia in terms of forestry exports. He pointed out that the US, Japan, China, the EU and the Republic of Korea are the top five importers of Vietnam’s timber and the combined value exceeded US$11 billion or about 90% total forestry exports last year.
Vietnam has more than 5500 companies operating in wood and forest product processing, which generate millions of jobs.
Revenue from forest environmental services to top US$121 million The Vietnam Administration of Forestry (VNFOREST) aims to collect VND2.8 trillion (US$121.7 million) from forest environmental services this year.
Under this policy, forest service users such as tourism businesses or hydropower plants will have to pay according to their use of forest resources to forest owners which could be individuals, households, organizations or communities.
According to VNFOREST Deputy Director, Phạm Văn Diển, forest carbon sequestration and emission reduction services, a new feature of 2021, will add between VND300 to 500 billion to the sector’s annual income from environmental services.
Last year the revenue from those services stood at VNĐ 2.56 trillion, meeting 91% of the yearly target. The revenues from forest environment services supported 226 forest management boards and 138,000 forest owners, while creating income for 81 forestry companies and livelihoods for more than 172,000 families in mountainous areas, helping lift their living standards.
Revenues from forest environmental services have become a sustainable source of finance that helps to increase the value of the forestry sector as well as contributes to GDP growth, according to VNFOREST.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has submitted a plan to the Prime Minister to plant one billion trees between the 2021-2025. In 2021 alone Vietnam will plant about 182 million trees and between 2022 and 2025 the country will plant over 200 million trees each year.
According to the Ministry, in recent years, although the forest coverage in Vietnam has increased the quality of natural forests has not improved, the function of protection forests has not been fully promoted and the density of trees to people in urban and rural areas is still low compared to that of many other countries.
Meanwhile, the impact of climate change and natural disasters has become increasingly complex affecting all aspects of socio-economic life and environment and threatening the country’s sustainable development. Planting and protecting forests and developing trees for environmental protection are of vital significance.
