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Laos Aims to Reforest Over Six Million Hectares by 2020


Click here for Lao version / ຄລິກຢູ່ບ່ອນນີ້ ເພື່ອອ່ານພາສາລາວ

Lao authorities plan to reforest more than six million hectares of land by 2020, with the aim to increase the density of Laos' forests to 70% of the country's total land area. Widespread logging and deforestation have made Laos increasingly vulnerable to natural disasters.

Mr. Thongphat Vongmany, Acting Director of the Forestry Division of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, recently announced in advance on the National Tree Planting Day, June 1, that the Lao government has set a goal of planting trees on more than 30,000 hectares of land across the country this year, as part of the nation's plan to reforest up to 70% of Laos' total land area by 2020, up from the current 41.5%.

Mr. Thongphat said that, in order to meet this goal, it is necessary for every sector to cooperate in reforesting over 6 million hectares of the country's land area, adding that the government plans to increase the reforested area to 250,000 hectares in 2010, or about 40% of the 2020 goal.

However, in real practice, it is not easy to reach the above mentioned goal because each year the government can barely achieve 70% of its annual goal due to lack of cooperation from private sector as well as the public in general. Another reason is that more than 30% of trees that were planted die. In addition, log cutting over the granted quota occurred in every province across the country. Land concessions for businesses such as mining and hydropower projects have also contributed to deforestation in Laos.

For more details, read our Lao version or listen to Songrit's report.

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