Not hasty or subjective in implementing legal documents on forestry

According to the Department of Forestry, to implement the Law on Forestry, the Vietnam Administration of Forestry (now the Department of Forestry and the Forest Protection Department) has advised on the issuance of 39 documents (11 Decrees, 2 Decisions of the Prime Minister, and 26 Circulars) to detail regulations and organize the implementation of the Law on Forestry.

As of now, the legal system on forestry after the promulgation of the Law on Forestry is basically complete and regulates all forestry activities along the chain, from managing, protecting, developing, and using forests to processing and trading forest products.

On that basis, in 2024, the units continue to advise on the development of four documents: Developing a Proposal for the Law to Amend and Supplement a Number of Articles of the Law on Forestry; Decree on Amending and Supplementing a Number of Articles of Decree No. 01/2019/ND-CP on Forest Rangers and Specialized Forest Protection Forces; Decree on Regulating the Liquidation of Planted Forests; and Decree on Planting and Developing Medicinal Plants in Forests.

At the conference, delegates also informed and discussed new legal documents on forestry, such as Article 248 of the Law on Land 2024, amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Forestry 2017. Decree No. 04/2024/ND-CP, dated January 12, 2024, amends and supplements a number of articles of the Government’s Decree No. 118/2014/ND-CP, dated December 17, 2014, arranging, innovating and developing, and improving the operational efficiency of agroforestry companies. The Government’s Decree No. 27/2024/ND-CP dated March 6, 2024, amends and supplements a number of articles of the Government’s Decree No. 156/2018/ND-CP dated November 16, 2018, detailing regulations on the implementation of some articles of the Law on Forestry.

Circular No. 13/2023/TT-BNNPTNT dated November 30, 2023 of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) amends and supplements a number of articles of Circular No. 28/2018/TT-BNNPTNT dated November 16, 2018 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development regulating sustainable forest management. Circular No. 16/2023/TT-BNNPTNT, dated December 15, 2023, amends and supplements a number of articles of Circular No. 33/2018/TT-BNNPTNT ,dated November 16, 2028, regulating the investigation, inventory, and monitoring of forest developments.

MARD’s Circular 20/2023TT-BNNPTNT dated December 15, 2023 amends and supplements a number of articles of Circular 32/2018/TT-BNNPTNT dated November 16, 2018 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development regulating the forest valuation method and forest price framework. Circular 21/2023/TT-BNNPTNT of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development guides some contents of forestry economic and technical norms. Circular No. 23/2023/TT-BNNPTNT of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development guides greenhouse gas inventory and measurement, reporting, and appraisal of greenhouse gas emission mitigation in the land use and forestry sectors.

Representatives of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development and local Forest Protection Sub-Departments also made recommendations. Specifically, the system of legal documents in the forestry sector has basically created a favorable legal corridor for operations. However, MARD, the Department of Forestry, and the Forest Protection Department continue to support and guide the implementation of regulations to solve a number of issues, such as: handling exotic trees in special-use forests; removing difficulties for forest owners to develop ecotourism; afforesting with silvicultural techniques to improve forest quality and protect the environment; and guiding specifically on liquidating planted forests that fail to become forests.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Quoc Tri emphasized that in the first 2 months of the year, the export value of the forestry industry reached USD 2.4 billion, an increase of nearly 40% compared to the same period in 2023. This achievement has a significant contribution from the system of legal documents in creating a space and scientific legal corridor for relevant entities to operate.

However, in order for the legal regulations to really come to life and resolve the existing problems in practice, state forestry management agencies, especially localities, must agree on the following principles: To effectively implement legal documents, it is first mandatory to understand them thoroughly. Second, deploy legal documents only when they are prescribed by law, according to authority. Thirdly, do not be hasty and subjective. As for contents that are still ambiguous, the units must quickly exchange with the Department of Forestry and the Forest Protection Department and learn from the experiences of provinces that have implemented them effectively.

The Deputy Minister also requested that, in parallel with providing comments and recommendations to perfect legal documents, localities that have recently experienced forest fires and deforestation need to urgently review and proactively develop a specific plan to prevent this situation from recurring. Besides, promote the application of modern technology in forest protection and forest fire prevention.

At the same time, as for the planted forest area that has been shaped, to increase the value of forests, it is mandatory to improve wood productivity and quality, with priority given to the solution of using tissue-cultured varieties with high productivity and quality. In particular, any locality with a reduced natural forest area must urgently inspect and clarify the causes and responsibilities of units and individuals to end this situation.