Launching project “Upscaling sustainable forest management and certification in Viet Nam – SFM”

On 26 July 2022, the project "Upscaling Sustainable Forest Management and Certification in Vietnam (SFM)" was officially launched by the Management Board for Forestry Projects (MBFP) and GIZ in Tuy Hoa, Phu Yen. Combined with the fruitful Project Planning Meeting on the previous day, the event provided involved partners with a clear project overview and introduces potential forestry interventions at site levels that the project can support.

From 2021 to 2024, the SFM project will be working at national level as well as provincial level focusing on the provinces Quang Tri, Binh Dinh and Phu Yen to assist Viet Nam in its transition to sustainable, climate-friendly forest management. By shifting to longer rotation times and more diverse forests, it will generate further benefits for climate resilience of nature and the forestry economy, as well as improve biodiversity and the livelihood of people. 

Ms. Anja Barth – Chief Technical Advisor of the project, GIZ, shared: “Recognizing the important role of sustainably managed forests for carbon sequestration and storage Viet Nam and Germany are among the signatories of the “Glasgow Leaders’ Declaration on Forests and Land Use”, which was initiated at the Climate-CoP 26 last year. The SFM Project aims to make a contribution to the large-scale transition towards sustainable forest management in Viet Nam to benefit the climate, economy, biodiversity and people.”

From the project, Mr. Nguyen Van Son – Deputy Head of the MBFP, emphasied “The project is in line with the Viet Nam’s priorties and strategic objectives. Implementing partners should make best use of the available support and ensure the quality of implemented activities, contributing to sustainable forest management.” The Vietnam Forest Development Strategy has formulated the ambitious target of managing 100% of forest areas sustainably by 2030. Viet Nam has a vast forest coverage of 42 per cent.

The event welcomed 70 delegates from the MBFP, the Viet Nam Administration of Forestry (VNFOREST), representatives of the three partnering provinces and  international development partners.

The Project “Upscaling of Sustainable Forest Management and Certification” is commissioned by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and jointly implemented by the Management Board of Forestry Projects and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH. The project is also in cooperation with UNIQUE Land Use GmbH with a focus on activities at the provincial level.