The Prime Minister has approved a scheme to better protect natural forests for the 2014-2020 period, with a view to improving their coverage quality and meeting domestic demand for timber. Specifically, the exploitation of natural forest wood will be stopped across the country, except for two areas in the Central Highlands province of Kon Tum and the central province of Quang Binh. The local authorities will keep closer tabs on forests and timber trading while rangers will have opportunities to hone their skills. Wood processing facilities will undergo rounds of inspection so that unlicensed and illegal ones must stop working, making it easier for relevant agencies to control legitimate sources of timber, and at the same time, imposing restriction on granting licenses to new processors. Each household, which is allocated to take care of forests, is allowed to exploit no more than 10 cubic meters of timber each time for family use while forest plantation will be accelerated. (Vietnam News Dec 11)
