Each buffer zone village in the special-use forest is supported with 40 million VND/year.
(Baonghean)That is one of the basic contents of Decision No. 24/2012/QD-TTg dated June 1, 2012, which has just been issued by the Prime Minister on a number of investment policies for the development of special-use forests. This policy also has the following basic and outstanding contents and incentives:
- Objectives when issuing investment policies for the development of special-use forests: The State reaffirms that special-use forests are national assets, and forest protection is the responsibility of the State and the whole society. The State invests in building infrastructure, essential facilities and ensuring costs for the operation of the forest management and protection apparatus, conserving biodiversity, training human resources, and improving the lives of people in special-use forests; The State encourages the development of forest environmental services and ecotourism businesses in special-use forests in accordance with the provisions of law, in order to offset costs, increase income of cadres, civil servants, and public employees, and gradually replace investment from the state budget...
- Development investment policies: The State budget invests in the development of special-use forests by planning and establishing investment projects for the development of special-use forests; promulgating categories and criteria for development investment; ensuring career funding and management and protection funding for special-use forests...
In addition, the State supports the development of buffer zone communities of special-use forests through investment in buffer zone communities to co-manage special-use forests, with a support level of 40 million VND/village/year. This fund is spent on the contents according to regulations and the Special-use Forest Management Board is assigned to manage this fund according to regulations on management of career funds; the detailed project to support annual investment in buffer zones must be planned and proposed by the village; the Forest Management Board presides over and coordinates with the Commune People's Committee to discuss with each village for mutual approval...
- The State encourages economic sectors to invest in developing ecotourism (business) in special-use forests according to strict regulations on forest protection; pilot the innovation of the ecotourism business department, accounting dependent on the Special-use Forest Management Board to establish a Joint Stock Company; lease the environment of special-use forests to develop ecotourism; provide incentives for investment in developing special-use forests.
Funds collected from ecotourism activities in special-use forests are used according to the mechanism of 25% of the above revenue to replace the budget capital allocated for the career and forest management costs; the remaining 75% of the revenue is spent in turn to support salary increases for staff working at the special-use forest management board, support for community development activities in the buffer zone, etc.
Phuong Ha
