With a large natural forest area and wide forest coverage, Hoa Binh province boasts considerable potential and advantages for developing forest-based economic activities. This is also an appropriate direction for building a sustainable and environmentally-friendly economy.
Lac Thuy district currently accommodates many "keo
lai” (Acacia hybrid) processing workshops which have helped raise the economic
value of planted forests. (Photo taken in An Binh commune).
Forest rangers of Hoa Binh province
and Cao Phong district on patrol in Thach Yen commune.
With the province’s forest coverage of more than
51%, forest not only serves as a "lung” but also plays a significant role in
protecting the environment, guaranteeing water and energy security, preventing
and controlling floods, and ensuring safety for the Red River Delta, including
Hanoi capital. It creates challenges as well as major advantages for the local
economy, culture, and society to develop fast and sustainably.
Over the past years, all-level Party committees
and administrations have identified protecting and sustainably developing
forest as one of the strategic tasks. To do that, Hoa Binh has worked to
fruitfully carry out the Government’s support policies.
The province has properly made payments for
forest environmental services, thus substantially contributing to
socio-economic development. Thanks to the payments, the persons in charge of
forest protection and development gain another source of income while forest
owners and managing units have more funding for forest and infrastructure
development.
At present, 116,037ha of local forest are
entitled to payments for forest environmental services which were valued at
over 21.5 billion VND (845,900 USD) in 2023.
In particular, to help improve the productivity
and quality of production forest, Hoa Binh is implementing a project on forest
protection and development at a total cost of 127.6 billion VND.
Nguyen Huu Tai, head of the province’s forest
protection division, said thanks to the effective implementation of support
mechanisms and policies, Hoa Binh has basically managed to maintain the natural
forest area and expand the cultivated one.
The area zoned for forestry now spans about
294,183ha, 236,919ha of which are under forest (comprising 141,614 ha of
natural forest and 95,305ha of planted forest).
Covering 51.61% of Hoa Binh’s area, forest is
present in 149 communes, wards, and townships of 10 district-level localities.
The protected area has contributed to effective forest-based economic growth.
Tai said there are about 16,000ha of planted
forest granted the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certificates.
In Resolution No. 27-NQ/TU, dated July 30, 2020,
of the provincial Party Committee’s Standing Board, Hoa Binh targets 50% and
over 80% of the cultivated production forest area granted the FSC certificates
by 2025 and 2030, respectively.
To that end, it is boosting the dissemination of
the State’s regulations on building and implementing sustainable forest
management plans, making assessment of and maintaining the eligibility for the
FSC certificates, and encouraging businesses holding economic and technical
strengths to coordinate with forest owners to apply for the certificates, he
added.
Over recent years, the Farmers' Union of Mai Chau district has implemented numerous specific programmes and activities to support its members in developing products under the One Commune One (OCOP) programme. These efforts have contributed to enhancing local agricultural branding, increasing goods value, and improving incomes and living standards for residents.
Since 2022, the Hoa Binh Department of Education and Training has provided advice for the provincial People's Committee to issue Plan No. 219/KH-UBND on November 17, 2022, which outlines the implementation of a project titled "Enhancing the application of Information Technology (IT) and Digital Transformation in Education and Training for the 2022–2025 period, with a vision to 2030.” As of now, the local education sector has made significant progress in IT adoption and digital transformation.
Hoa Binh allocated over 30 trillion VND (nearly 1.18 billion USD) to develop infrastructure systems in ethnic minority and mountainous areas during 2019 - 2024. Priority was given to transport and irrigation infrastructure; markets; schools; medical stations; communal houses; and power grid, telecommunication, radio, and television systems.
The Hoa Binh provincial organising committee for anniversary activities on December 17 held a ceremony to unveil a ceramic mural on the local military-civilian ties and release a book on the Party and political work of the provincial armed forces during 1947 – 2024, in commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the Vietnam People’s Army (VPA) and 35th anniversary of the All-People Defence Festival.
In recent years, Hoa Binh has allocated significant resources to foster cooperative economy, helping ethnic minorities capitalise on their potential and advantages to escape poverty.
As a mountainous district still facing numerous challenges, Da Bac has made notable progress in advancing administrative reforms across various areas. The district has prioritised reorganising and streamlining its administrative apparatus, operating "one-stop-shop” units, and applying information technology (IT) in the handling of administrative procedures. Efforts have also been directed toward upgrading infrastructure and equipment to enhance service quality for residents and businesses.
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