Strengthening inter-sectoral cooperation in wildlife protection at Pu Mat National Park

Attending the workshop were domestic and foreign scientists and representatives of relevant levels and sectors in Nghe An province.

The workshop was attended by scientists and wildlife protection organizations at home and abroad. Photo: Thanh Chung

Pu Mat National Park is one of three special-use forests in Nghe An province. The park is located on the administrative boundaries of three districts: Anh Son, Con Cuong and Tuong Duong. The boundary of the park is 201 km long, of which 61 km borders Laos. Pu Mat National Park is the third largest in area and the first in biodiversity among national parks and reserves in Vietnam.

It is estimated that Pu Mat National Park currently has 2,500 species of plants belonging to 160 families; 132 species of mammals, 361 species of birds, 63 species of reptiles, 33 species of amphibians, 119 species of fish and 1,084 species of insects. There are many rare and endangered species of animals such as elephants, tigers, saola, grey-shanked douc langurs, crested pheasants, red-necked geese... Currently, Pu Mat National Park is proposing to become an ASEAN Heritage Park.

Pu Mat National Park has the most biodiversity in Vietnam. Photo: Thanh Cuong

In recent years, under the direct direction of the People's Committee of Nghe An province, wildlife protection work at Pu Mat National Park has received attention and focus and achieved many good results.

However, the threat to the survival of wild animals here is very high, namely: Habitat changes; animal trafficking and trapping and hunting are still complicated, causing the number of individuals of some species to decrease. In the past 3 months, the Park has discovered and destroyed 108 huts and hunting camps in the core area.

Leaders of Con Cuong District People's Committee opened the workshop. Photo: Thanh Chung

At this workshop to strengthen inter-sectoral cooperation in wildlife protection at Pu Mat National Park, delegates shared information on the current situation and threats to wildlife in the park; information on wildlife conservation as well as legal regulations on wildlife management; discussed and agreed to build an inter-sectoral cooperation mechanism to enforce laws to protect wildlife in the park.

The solutions to protect wildlife in Pu Mat National Park in the coming time were proposed at the workshop as follows: Strengthening the patrolling and protection work of the forest rangers and forest protection officers; replicating the model of forest protection patrolling staff; strengthening cooperation in patrolling and arresting violations within Pu Mat National Park and the buffer zone; building seminars, seminars, and projects on patrolling and arresting wildlife trafficking activities between local government units; strictly handling hunting activities according to the 2015 Penal Code amended in 2017 and related decrees; strengthening propaganda activities for people about the importance of wildlife and implementing economic development solutions to reduce pressure on forests.