Helping people convert forestry land use purposes: Good work from Quy Chau mountainous district

People say

Chau Tien is a locality that develops the afforestation movement slower than some communes of Quy Chau such as Chau Binh, Chau Hoi, Chau Hanh... People here say that for a long time everyone has known that planting production forests will bring economic benefits, but they do not dare because they might break the law. "But now the government is helping..." - Mr. Tran Van Ngoc (born in 1980), Hong Tien 1 village excitedly said.

Tran Van Ngoc said that in 2003, his father-in-law, Mr. Luong Van Phuot, was assigned 23 hectares of forest by the state according to Decree 163. For 15 years, his father-in-law's family only managed it and had no impact on the forest.

Because the assigned forest is poor and there are no secondary forest products, there is almost no income from the forest. Going to many places, seeing people planting acacia forests for a very good income, I really want to follow but then I do not dare because the officials remind me that if I arbitrarily change the purpose of using forest land, it is a violation of the law.

Mr. Tran Van Ngoc and residents of Chau Tien commune (left) tell the story of how the government helped them convert forestry land. Photo: Nhat Lan

Then in 2016, his family was informed by the commune authorities that if they wanted to plant forests, they could submit a request for inspection and consideration by the competent authority. Overjoyed, Ngoc's father-in-law wrote the request.

After that, a group of district officials came to inspect the field, assess the forest status and concluded that the family was allowed to convert 10 hectares of land to plant, the remaining 13 hectares were to continue to be managed and strictly protected. The family has since borrowed money from the bank, bought seedlings, hired people to clear the land, prepare the land, and dig holes to plant acacia. Up to now, on the 10 hectares of land allowed to be converted, acacia has grown green, with tall, mature trees.

Asked Mr. Ngoc, what procedures did the government help with? Was there any cost? He said his family made an application, presented the certificate of forest land use rights, sent officers from departments and forest rangers to inspect the field, and carefully evaluated each forest. Where the forest was still good and had trees, the officers marked it for protection; where the forest was poor and had only bushes and reeds, they included it in the file for conversion...

Regarding the paperwork, through many stages, there is a consulting unit to carry out. The family has to pay 50% of the cost, with a unit price of 150 thousand VND/ha; a total of 1.5 million VND. “The government supports 50% of the cost, we only have to pay 1.5 million VND. Everyone in the family is excited to be able to plant 10 hectares of forest. Thank you very much to the government, thank you to the authorities…” – Tran Van Ngoc happily said.

According to Chau Tien commune forestry officer, Mr. Sam Duc Hoa, in 2016, in Chau Tien commune, in addition to Mr. Tran Van Ngoc's family, there were 3 other families that received government help to complete procedures to convert the purpose of using forestry land.

In 2017, 7 families applied. Currently, the necessary procedures for 7 households have been basically completed. Mr. Sam Duc Hoa said: “I think this is a very good thing done by the Quy Chau district government. Because it helps people create a sustainable livelihood…”.

For the people to act

According to the study, the Quy Chau district government's assistance to people in converting forestry land use purposes is carried out in accordance with Circular 23/2013/TT-BNNPTNT of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development regulating the conversion of depleted natural forests into production forests. From 2016 to present, Quy Chau has helped nearly 570 households to be granted the right to use forestry land by the state according to Decree 163.

An area of ​​forestry land converted for use in Chau Tien commune. Photo: Dao Tuan

But to get this result, is a long story full of worries. For many years, Quy Chau used to be a hot spot in the province regarding the situation of natural forest destruction, encroachment on agricultural and forestry land and illegal transfer of forestry land use rights.

There are many causes, but the root cause of this situation is basically due to people's difficult lives, "hot hands have to catch ears".

Understanding the core cause, for many years, the Quy Chau district government, in addition to focusing on disseminating and popularizing the law and directing strict handling of violations, has also been struggling to find solutions to solve the people's livelihood problems.

Studying Circular 23 of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, it is found that for natural production forests that are poor and exhausted, forest owners, whether organizations, communities or households, will be allowed to carry out procedures to convert land use purposes to plant replacement forests. Quy Chau has a large number of households assigned by the state to manage natural production forests, but there are many areas of poor and exhausted forests, even bare hills. Therefore, the regulations in Circular 23 are clearly an opening, why have they not been applied?

Looking for an answer, Quy Chau district officials understood that the reason was because most of the households in Quy Chau who were assigned forests by the state were ethnic minorities with limited awareness, while their economic conditions were difficult, how could they grasp and carry out the procedures to get approval from the competent authorities?

And the solution has emerged from here. The government must really pay attention and help people carry out procedures so that people can change the purpose of using forestry land, from depleted forests, to reforestation and replacement!

In 2016, Quy Chau district directed the commune authorities to inform the people that the district would consider and help people who wish to convert the purpose of using forestry land. And to stimulate demand, in the same year, Quy Chau allocated 200 million VND from the agricultural career budget to support 50% of the cost for people to complete procedures according to regulations.

One thing that Quy Chau district is careful and concerned about is to accurately assess the current state of natural production forests; only depleted forests or bare land are allowed to carry out conversion procedures. Because if the assessment is not objective and accurate, it will invisibly create conditions for the destruction of natural forests.

Therefore, the People's Committee of Quy Chau district assigned the Forest Protection Department to coordinate with specialized departments and commune authorities to strictly inspect and assess the forest status.

Through review, clearly separate which are natural production forests that need to be protected; which are depleted forests that cannot be restored and which are bare hills that can be converted to alternative forestation. From there, carry out the process, prepare documents in the correct order for the competent authority to approve in accordance with the regulations in Circular 23 of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

People of Chau Tien commune told reporters about the conversion of forest land. Photo: Dao Tuan

Quy Chau Forest Protection Department officers participating in the inspections and reviews said that the natural forest areas in the area that need to be protected have been documented, listed, and even numbered for each tree; in addition, there are about 8,000 hectares of forest land that is land with depleted forests, or bare hills that can be converted to reforest production forests.

Regarding the policy of Quy Chau district to help people, allocating a part of the budget to support people in carrying out procedures to convert the purpose of using forestry land, according to you, this is a positive action, acting for the people. This is not only a boost to help people develop the economy in the long term, but also reduces the pressure of people on natural forests...

Socialize land allocation and issuance of forestry land use right certificates!

In Quy Chau district, from 2014 to now, there are about 15,000 hectares of forestry land that have not been allocated to the people. The reason is that there is no funding source to carry out the work of measuring, allocating land, and issuing certificates of forestry land use rights.

Regarding this content, Chairman of Quy Chau District People's Committee, Mr. Ngo Duc Thuan said: "Since 2014, the province has had a policy to grant Quy Chau 15 billion VND. But due to difficulties, it has not been available yet. Therefore, the entire area of ​​forestry land is still managed by the commune-level authorities and the village communities...".

With the determination to complete the work of land allocation and granting certificates of forest land use rights for the remaining area of ​​15,000 hectares, Quy Chau is aiming at socialization, calling on people to share and shoulder part of the costs.

The socialization problem was detailed by Quy Chau, to issue land use right certificates, to allocate each hectare of forestry land requires a cost of 1 million VND. Of which, people will be called upon to contribute 300 thousand VND, the remaining 700 thousand VND will come from the budget.

“According to the provisions of Decree 75/2015/ND-CP, households assigned by the state to protect forests (granted forestry land use right certificates) will be paid 400,000 VND/ha. If each household is assigned about 3 hectares of forest and granted land use right certificates, they will receive 1.2 million VND per year.

Thus, by only spending a part of the budget to protect 3 hectares of forest in the first year, people will have production materials and a sustainable source of income. Why not mobilize people to support it?" - Mr. Ngo Duc Thuan analyzed.

On the forestry land that was converted for use a few months ago, acacia trees have sprouted green. Photo: Nhat Lan

Agreeing with this solution, the People's Committee of Quy Chau district has requested the Standing Committee of the District Party Committee to consider and agree, and make an implementation plan. In particular, publicly soliciting public opinions to create consensus is a key requirement...

Mr. Ngo Duc Thuan said: “Quy Chau has implemented the collection of opinions from the grassroots. When fully grasping the information, the people are very supportive. Because everyone wants to be allocated land and granted land use right certificates. I believe that Quy Chau will soon implement the socialization of land allocation and issuance of forestry land use right certificates…”.

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We also believe that Quy Chau district will soon be able to carry out this work. Because although calling on people to share and contribute a part of the cost, the goal is also to help the people themselves have means of production, create stable jobs, and have long-term income.

And thinking about the situation of illegal forest exploitation, encroachment on forestry land, violations in the transfer of forestry land use rights; along with the shortcomings and problems in land allocation and use of forestry land... that have lasted for many years, we see that the financial support, helping people carry out procedures to convert forestry land use purposes and socializing land allocation and granting forestry land use right certificates in Quy Chau district, is similar to the "illegal contracting" in Vinh Phuc province years ago. That similarity is the same will for the people.

People say

Chau Tien commune is a locality that develops the afforestation movement more slowly than some communes of Quy Chau such as Chau Binh, Chau Hoi, Chau Hanh... People here say that, for a long time, everyone has known that planting production forests will bring economic benefits, but they do not dare because they might break the law. "But now the government is helping..." - Mr. Tran Van Ngoc (born in 1980), Hong Tien 1 village, excitedly said.

Tran Van Ngoc said that in 2003, his father-in-law, Mr. Luong Van Phuot, was assigned 23 hectares of forest by the state according to Decree 163. For 15 years, his father-in-law's family only managed the forest and had no impact on it. Because the assigned forest was poor and had no secondary forest products, there was almost no income from the forest. Going to many places, seeing people planting acacia forests for a very good income, he really wanted to follow suit but then did not dare because the officials reminded him that if he arbitrarily changed the purpose of using forest land, it was a violation of the law.

Then in 2016, his family was informed by the commune authorities that if they wanted to plant forests, they should submit a request for inspection and consideration by the competent authority. Overjoyed, Ngoc's father-in-law wrote the request. Later, a delegation of district officials came to inspect the field, assess the forest status, and concluded that the family was allowed to convert 10 hectares of land to plant, and the remaining 13 hectares would continue to be strictly managed and protected. The family has since borrowed money from the bank, bought seedlings, hired people to clear the land, prepare the land, and dig holes to plant acacia trees. Up to now, on the 10 hectares allowed for conversion, acacia trees have grown green, with large chest-sized trees.

Asked Mr. Ngoc, what procedures did the government help with? Was it costly? He said, his family made an application, presented the certificate of forest land use rights, sent officers from departments and forest rangers to inspect the field, and carefully evaluated each forest. Where the forest was still good and had trees, the officers marked it for protection; where the forest was poor and had only bushes and reeds, it was included in the file for conversion... Regarding the file procedures, through many stages, a consulting unit implemented it. The family had to pay 50% of the cost, with a unit price of 150,000 VND/ha; a total of 1.5 million VND. "The government supported 50% of the cost, we only had to pay 1.5 million VND. Being able to plant 10 hectares of forest, everyone in the family was excited. Thank you very much to the government, thank you very much to the authorities..." - Tran Van Ngoc happily said.

According to the forestry officer of Chau Tien commune, Mr. Sam Duc Hoa said that in 2016, in addition to Mr. Tran Van Ngoc's family, 3 other families in Chau Tien commune received help from the government to complete procedures to convert the purpose of using forestry land. In 2017, 7 families submitted applications. Currently, the necessary procedures for 7 households have been basically completed. Mr. Sam Duc Hoa said: "I think this is a very good thing done by the Quy Chau district government. Because it helps people create a sustainable livelihood...".

For the people to act

According to the study, the Quy Chau district government's assistance to people in converting forestry land use purposes is carried out in accordance with Circular 23/2013/TT-BNNPTNT of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development regulating the conversion of depleted natural forests into production forests. From 2016 to present, Quy Chau has helped nearly 570 households to be granted the right to use forestry land by the state according to Decree 163.

But to get this result, is a long story full of worries. Quy Chau, many years ago, was a hot spot of the province in terms of natural forest destruction, encroachment on forestry land and illegal transfer of forestry land use rights. There are many reasons, but the root cause of this situation is basically due to the people's lives being too difficult, "hot hands have to catch ears". Understanding the core cause is like that, so for many years, the Quy Chau district government, in addition to focusing on propaganda and dissemination of laws; directing strict handling of violations..., has also been struggling to find a solution to solve the problem of people's livelihood.

Studying Circular 23 of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, it is found that with natural production forests that are poor, the forest owners, whether organizations, communities or households, will be able to carry out procedures to convert land use purposes to plant replacement forests. Quy Chau has a large number of households assigned by the state to manage natural production forests, but there are many areas of poor, exhausted forests, even bare hills. Therefore, the regulations in Circular 23 are clearly an opening, why have they not been applied? Looking for an answer, Quy Chau district officials understand that the reason is because most of the households in Quy Chau that are assigned forests by the state are ethnic minorities, with limited awareness, while economic conditions are difficult, how can they grasp and carry out the procedures to get approval from competent authorities? And the solution has emerged from here. The government must really pay attention to helping people carry out procedures so that people can convert the purpose of using forestry land, from depleted forests, to reforestation and replacement forests!

In 2016, Quy Chau district directed the commune authorities to inform the people that the district would consider and help people who wish to convert the purpose of using forestry land. And to stimulate demand, in the same year, Quy Chau allocated 200 million VND from the agricultural budget to support 50% of the cost for people to complete procedures according to regulations.

One thing that Quy Chau district is careful and concerned about is to accurately assess the current status of natural production forests; only depleted forests or bare land can be allowed to carry out conversion procedures. Because if the assessment is not objective and accurate, it will inadvertently create conditions for the destruction of natural forests. Therefore, Quy Chau district People's Committee assigned the Forest Protection Department to coordinate with specialized departments and commune authorities to strictly inspect and assess the current status of forests. Through review, clearly separate which are natural production forests that need to be protected; which are depleted forests that cannot be restored and which are bare hills that can be converted to reforestation. From there, carry out the process, prepare documents in the correct order for the competent authority to approve in accordance with the regulations in Circular 23 of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The officers of Quy Chau Forest Protection Department who participated in the inspections and reviews said that the natural forest areas in the area that need to be protected have been recorded, posted, and even numbered for each tree; in addition, there are about 8,000 hectares of forest land that is land with poor forests, or bare hills that can be converted to production forests. Regarding the policy of Quy Chau district to help people, allocating a part of the budget to support people in carrying out procedures to convert the purpose of using forestry land, according to them, this is a positive action, acting for the people. This is not only a boost to help people develop the economy in the long term, but also reduces the pressure of people on natural forests...

Socialize land allocation and issuance of forestry land use right certificates!

In Quy Chau district, from 2014 to now, there are about 15,000 hectares of forestry land that have not been allocated to the people. The reason is that there is no funding source to carry out the work of measuring, allocating land, and issuing forestry land use right certificates. Regarding this content, Chairman of Quy Chau District People's Committee, Mr. Ngo Duc Thuan said: "Since 2014, the province has a policy to grant Quy Chau 15 billion VND. But due to difficulties, it has not been available yet. Therefore, the entire area of ​​forestry land is still managed by the commune-level authorities and the village communities...".

With the determination to complete the work of land allocation and granting certificates of forest land use rights for the remaining area of ​​15,000 hectares, Quy Chau is aiming at socialization, calling on people to share and shoulder part of the costs. The socialization problem is detailed by Quy Chau, to grant certificates of land use rights, to allocate each hectare of forest land requires a cost of 1 million VND. Of which, people will be called on to contribute 300 thousand VND, the remaining 700 thousand VND will come from the budget. “According to the provisions of Decree 75/2015/ND-CP, households assigned by the state to protect forests (granted a certificate of forest land use rights) will be paid 400,000 VND/ha. If each household is assigned about 3 hectares of forest and granted a certificate of land use rights, they will receive 1.2 million VND per year. Thus, by only spending a part of the cost of protecting 3 hectares of forest in the first year, people will have production materials and a sustainable source of income. Why not mobilize people to support?” - Mr. Ngo Duc Thuan analyzed.

Agreeing with this solution, the People's Committee of Quy Chau district has requested the Standing Committee of the District Party Committee to consider and agree, and make a plan for implementation. In particular, publicly soliciting public opinions to create consensus is a key requirement... Mr. Ngo Duc Thuan said: "Quy Chau has deployed to collect opinions from the grassroots. When fully grasping the information, the people are very supportive. Because everyone wants to be allocated land and granted land use right certificates. I believe that Quy Chau will soon be able to implement the socialization of land allocation and issuance of forestry land use right certificates...".

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We also believe that Quy Chau district will soon be able to carry out this work. Because although calling on people to share and contribute a part of the cost, the goal is also to help the people themselves have means of production, create stable jobs, and have long-term income. And thinking about the situation of illegal forest exploitation, encroachment on forestry land, violations in the transfer of forestry land use rights; along with the shortcomings and problems in land allocation and use of forestry land... lasting for many years, seeing that the financial support, helping people carry out procedures to convert the purpose of forestry land use and socializing the work of land allocation and granting forestry land use right certificates of Quy Chau district, is similar to the "illegal contracting" in Vinh Phuc province years ago. That similar thing is the same wish for the people.