Speaking at the launch of the 2026 Tree-Planting Festival in Cam Duong ward, northern Lao Cai province, President Cuong noted environmental protection and afforestation must be treated as a strategic, long-term investment rather than a seasonal campaign.

Vietnam faces mounting pressures from climate change, environmental pollution and biodiversity loss, requiring ministries, local authorities and citizens to deepen the tree-planting movement and integrate it with livelihood development and sustainable growth, he said.

The president highlighted that despite severe storms and floods in 2025, Vietnam planted 285,000 hectares of concentrated forests, exceeding its annual target by 9%. Timber and forestry exports surpassed US$18 billion, up 6% year on year, while forest environmental service revenues reached more than VND3.9 trillion, an increase of over 11%. National forest coverage remained stable at 42%.

Lao Cai ranked second nationwide in tree planting, with more than 100 million trees planted under the “One Billion Trees” programme for 2021–2025. The province has played a key role in protecting upstream watershed forests that safeguard water resources for downstream regions.

The President urged authorities to expand green spaces in both urban and rural areas, strengthen sustainable natural carbon absorption measures and promote the green and circular economy.

Such efforts, he said, would contribute directly to Vietnam’s commitment to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 and to deeper participation in global green value chains.

He also called on Lao Cai to continue safeguarding headwater forests, preserve biodiversity and promote high-value agricultural and medicinal forest products while protecting local cultural heritage.

After launching the annual tree-planting campaign, President Cuong joined local officials and residents in planting trees at a cultural park project site in Cam Duong ward.

The annual “Tree-Planting Festival” traces its origins to a campaign launched in the spring of 1960 by President Ho Chi Minh, following his call published in Nhân Dân (People’s Daily) in late 1959. Emphasising the long-term economic and environmental benefits of afforestation, he encouraged citizens nationwide to plant trees at the beginning of each Lunar New Year.

Over the decades, the initiative has evolved into a nationwide movement, contributing to forest expansion, climate resilience and environmental awareness, and has become an enduring cultural tradition in Vietnam.

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