To make our homeland greener.

(Baonghean) - More than half a century has passed since President Ho Chi Minh's call in the Spring of 1960, and the Tree Planting Festival has become a beautiful traditional custom of the Vietnamese people. Every year, in the warm spring weather of the first month of the year, people all over the country join hands with practical and meaningful activities to respond to the Tree Planting Festival.

On February 6th, officials, civil servants, armed forces personnel, and workers in agencies, units, and businesses began their first working day of the new year, the Year of the Horse 2014. As is tradition, each person started their first day of work with a very meaningful activity: personally planting and nurturing the green shoots of life. At the grounds of the Nghe An Friendship General Hospital (a 700-bed hospital) along Xo Viet Nghe Tinh Street, Nghi Phu commune, Vinh City – the location chosen by Nghe An province to launch the "Tree Planting Festival in Eternal Gratitude to Uncle Ho" in the Spring of the Year of the Horse 2014 – a vibrant and warm atmosphere permeated the space. Everyone attending the ceremony felt exhilarated and joyful, as another spring arrived, filled with happiness at the very positive achievements of the past year and the bright prospects of the Year of the Horse in Nghe An province.

Provincial leaders plant trees in the grounds of the 700-bed General Hospital. Photo: TD

Among the crowds attending the tree-planting ceremony were provincial leaders, students, civil servants, armed forces personnel, and local people. Perhaps the most enthusiastic were the staff and doctors of the Nghe An Provincial Friendship General Hospital. Within its spacious grounds, a modern hospital is gradually taking shape. Construction work is being expedited by the contractor to ensure its inauguration on the occasion of President Ho Chi Minh's birthday, May 19th, 2014. And what could be more meaningful for the hospital's medical staff than the fact that the tree-planting ceremony – an activity now a tradition initiated by President Ho Chi Minh – is taking place at the provincial hospital itself this year?

On the sidelines of the main ceremony area, we met Dr. Le Thi Chung – Head of the Traditional Medicine Department, Nghe An Friendship General Hospital, who was participating in the Tree Planting Festival with her colleagues. Like other doctors and medical staff working at the hospital, she couldn't hide her joy that in just a short time, doctors and medical staff will be working in a spacious environment with modern equipment, contributing to improving the conditions for examination and treatment for the people. From the perspective of someone working in the medical field, she shared: “A hospital campus with many green trees will create a clean environment, contributing to helping patients recover faster. We will also have a spacious environment to work in. Therefore, each tree planted in the hospital grounds today has immense significance. And participating in the ceremony is also an encouragement for each staff member and doctor of the hospital to do more practical things to build a greener, cleaner, and more beautiful workplace.”

Also during the ceremony, we witnessed a touching scene of students from Nghi Phu Secondary School, Nghi Phu Commune, Vinh City. From early morning, 580 students, dressed in their neat uniforms, joined their teachers in participating in the Tree Planting Festival. It is known that before participating in the ceremony, teachers and students had already planted 26 trees in the school grounds to celebrate the Tree Planting Festival. The students enthusiastically and carefully shoveled soil around each tree, just like the older students. This image left a lasting impression, not only on us but also on many others present at the ceremony. All of this made the Spring of the Year of the Horse even more complete and fulfilling, because these students are the young sprouts that will create the future spring of our country.

Wiping away the sweat from her chubby, innocent face after planting a tree, Ngo Thi Quynh Nhu, a 9th-grade student from Nghi Phu Secondary School, shared: “This is the second consecutive time I’ve attended the provincial tree-planting festival. Each time I stand in the space of the ceremony, it’s definitely an unforgettable memory for me. Because here, my friends and I once again get to review the tradition of the tree-planting festival initiated by our beloved President Ho Chi Minh. From there, we continue to raise awareness and take practical actions to protect the environment, first in our homes, then at school and in public spaces.” Indeed, perhaps for these young sprouts of the nation, the annual tree-planting festival has meaning that goes beyond the children enthusiastically shoveling soil and tending to each tree today. More profoundly, it equips them with the concept of a beautiful national tradition and raises their awareness of preserving and protecting the environment. According to Mr. Nguyen Tien Lam, Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, speaking at the provincial launching ceremony: "We have prepared and allocated approximately 600 large, shade-providing trees to districts, cities, and towns to organize launching ceremonies and tree planting activities right in their localities. Organizing these events at the grassroots level will create a vibrant and widespread atmosphere, thereby contributing to raising public awareness of the effectiveness of tree planting, reforestation, and environmental protection."

Joining in the festive atmosphere of the New Year, "Tree Planting Festival - Forever Remembering Uncle Ho," the leaders, reporters, and staff of Nghe An Newspaper planted 10 sour plum trees in the newspaper's office grounds. This has become a traditional activity of the staff, reporters, and employees of Nghe An Newspaper in recent years to practically and effectively learn from and follow the moral example of President Ho Chi Minh. Therefore, at the tree planting ceremony, every staff member, reporter, and employee rolled up their sleeves, some digging holes, some adding fertilizer, some planting trees, some using hoes and shovels to loosen the soil around the roots, and others carrying water to water the trees. Everyone wanted to contribute their small part to honoring the beautiful traditions and culture of the Vietnamese people every New Year. New reporter Phuong Chi excitedly shared: “This is my first year participating in a tree-planting event organized by my agency. I found the atmosphere truly joyful during this great national celebration at the beginning of spring, and even more so because I was able to contribute a small part in ‘making the country ever more vibrant and prosperous.’”

Indeed, the Spring Tree Planting Festival has become a cherished tradition of the entire Vietnamese nation. The vitality of this tradition endures because it truly brings practical value, contributing to beautifying the environment, combating climate change, and addressing current environmental pollution. Specifically at Nghe An Newspaper, over the years, by maintaining the spring tree planting movement and caring for and protecting the trees within the office grounds, creating a green, clean, and beautiful environment, the newspaper has contributed to becoming a provincial-level cultural unit and creating green spaces for Vinh City. The Spring Tree Planting Festival at Nghe An Newspaper is even more meaningful when these newly planted trees are specifically assigned to each department and unit for care and protection, ensuring their healthy growth.

Not only at Nghe An Newspaper, but in recent days, in every agency, unit, and district, city, and town in the province, responding to the Tree Planting Festival has become a widespread activity.

At the Military Region Headquarters (Military Region 4), the tree-planting movement among agencies and units has also developed strongly. Implementing this movement, every time Tet (Lunar New Year) comes around, agencies and units within the Military Region's armed forces organize tree-planting and reforestation activities, which have had a positive and widespread impact, contributing to building an increasingly green, clean, and beautiful environment. This time, agencies and units throughout the Military Region simultaneously planted 211,755 trees of various types (including 17,375 fruit trees and 194,380 timber trees).

In Quynh Luu district, the "Tree Planting Festival in Remembrance of Uncle Ho - Spring of Giap Ngo 2014" was also launched. This year, Quynh Luu district aims to plant 250 hectares of new forest and 300,000 scattered trees of various types. In 2013, Quynh Luu district did a good job of caring for, managing, and protecting nearly 12,000 hectares of forest, planting 255 hectares of concentrated forest and 250,000 scattered trees of various types. Immediately after the launching ceremony, along both sides of the Hau - Doi - Yen - Minh tourist route, the leaders of Quynh Luu district, teachers and students of Quynh Yen Secondary School, along with officials and people of Quynh Doi and Quynh Yen communes, planted 300 new trees.

In Nghi Loc district, in response to the "Tree Planting Festival in memory of President Ho Chi Minh - Spring of the Year of the Horse," Party committees, government agencies, departments, and mass organizations from the district to the grassroots level are stepping up propaganda and mobilization efforts to raise awareness and responsibility among all segments of the population, encouraging active participation in planting trees, reforestation, and protecting and developing existing forest resources. The immediate goal is to excellently fulfill the 2014 plan targets, which include planting 80 hectares of concentrated forest, 80,000 to 100,000 scattered trees, caring for and protecting over 8,850 hectares of forest, harvesting over 800 tons of pine resin, and effectively preventing and controlling forest fires in the area.

In Yen Thanh district, which has a large area of ​​forest and forestry land, over the years, all levels of government, sectors, and the entire population have consistently performed well in planting trees and reforesting barren hills and mountains. In 2013 alone, the district planted over 1,000 hectares of forest and over 5,000 scattered trees, effectively protecting over 21,000 hectares of production and special-use forests, preventing forest fires and pest outbreaks. Government reforestation projects have been implemented effectively, bringing economic benefits and ensuring ecological balance. At the launching ceremony on February 6th, district leaders urged all levels of Party committees, governments, agencies, schools, and the entire population to effectively organize the Spring Tree Planting Festival, creating a vibrant atmosphere of competition and raising awareness among all citizens to work together to protect a green, clean, and beautiful environment. Following the opening drumbeat, officials and people of Yen Thanh district participated in planting trees at Phan Dang Luu Secondary School, the District Health Center, government offices, and along transportation routes, implementing a reforestation plan to strive for a forest cover rate of nearly 40% in 2014.

In Con Cuong district, the launching ceremony was also held with the participation of district leaders, mass organizations, armed forces in the area, teachers and students of Yen Khe Secondary School, and people from four villages: Na Pha, Trung Huong, Ban Nua, and Ban To. Currently, forest cover in Con Cuong district reaches nearly 80%, the highest in the country. For many years, planted forests have brought a large income to the people, especially the entire district has 5,000 hectares of bamboo and over 1,000 hectares of acacia, yielding hundreds of millions of dong in revenue. Building on these results, at the launching ceremony, the district implemented 10 key tasks to raise people's awareness of forest planting and protection, actively participate in environmental protection, and prevent acts that harm forest resources. Following the launching ceremony, the district organized the planting of 530 mahogany and black ebony trees in 13 communes and towns.

In Cua Lo, following the launching ceremony, leaders, heads of departments and agencies, and armed forces of the town participated in planting trees at the kindergarten and the Martyrs' Monument in Nghi Thuy ward. To promote the socialization of tree planting and environmental protection, Cua Lo town launched a campaign encouraging officials, citizens, and businesses in the area to participate in tree planting from now until February 28th. The specific targets are: each official and civil servant contributes 100,000 VND to purchase seedlings, and each family plants 5 trees. In response to the initial launch, Nghi Thuy ward allocated 40 million VND from its budget and donations from businesses to purchase seedlings for this planting campaign.

In Anh Son district, the launching ceremony of the Spring Tree Planting Festival in the Year of the Horse was attended by district leaders, various departments, and 400 officials, civil servants, and employees from agencies in the district, as well as residents of Anh Son town. With the aim of creating a green, clean, and beautiful landscape and environment, at the launching ceremony, district-level officials, civil servants, and employees, along with residents of Anh Son town, planted over 300 mahogany trees in the district center, and officials and residents throughout the district planted over 100,000 trees across all 21 communes and towns.

In Hoang Mai Town, with the slogan "Everyone plants trees, every household competes in planting trees," this year's tree-planting festival attracted a large number of people from all walks of life, demonstrating the environmental protection spirit of the people of Hoang Mai. This year, Hoang Mai aims to plant 120,000 trees of various types, including 17,000 trees planted throughout the town during the Lunar New Year of the Horse in school grounds, village roads, cultural centers, and martyrs' cemeteries. Immediately after the launching ceremony, the leaders of Hoang Mai Town, officials, teachers, and students of Quynh Thien Secondary School participated in planting 300 black star trees as a commemorative gesture in the school grounds and along the corridor of urban road No. 4.

Climate change is one of humanity's challenges in the 21st century. Therefore, environmental protection, linked to the Tet Tree Planting Festival, is proving highly effective in practice. This once again affirms President Ho Chi Minh's profound ideology. Spring has returned to Mother Vietnam, and each green sprout nurtured and cared for will increasingly contribute to making our homeland "greener mountains, greener rivers, greener fields, greener rice paddies," just as envisioned in the "Tet Tree Planting Festival in Eternal Gratitude to President Ho Chi Minh" launched in Nghe An during the Year of the Horse.

News Reporting Team