South Korea Funds $4.5M for Vietnam’s Forestry Projects so far
With funding mostly from the South Korean government, the Asian Forest Cooperation Organization (AFoCO) has so far financed Vietnam $4.5 million for its forestry projects, an official has said.
Vietnamese Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan summarized such aid while meeting with AFoCO General Director Park Chongho on December 25, as part of his South Korea visit.
Of which, the $1.5-million mangrove forest development project in northern Thai Binh province is the biggest.
Regarding aid for ASEAN, AFoCO has cooperated with Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar on a project on forest fire prevention capability enhancement. The project uses $6.5 million from AFoCO and $2 million from South Korea-ASEAN fund.
Minister Hoan spoke highly of such assistance, which has remarkably contributed to Vietnam’s climate change response projects and programs.
Mr. Park, for his part, lauded Vietnam’s strong commitments to sustainable forest protection, development, and management and showed his belief that South Korea-funded projects will help ensure welfare for residents living near forests.
Based on such results, Minister Hoan informed the host of a project on building a forestry innovation center at the Vietnam National University of Forestry, and received a positive reply from Mr. Park.
Besides, AFoCO will help form a branch of the Korea-Mekong Forest Cooperation Center (KMFCC) in Vietnam.