At a seminar regarding the PES policy in Hanoi on February 26, MARD Deputy Minister Hua Duc Nhi said that the decree will help stabilise the lives of forest growers and protect forests and their resources, thus reducing greenhouse gas emissions and preventing climate change.

According to Director of the US Agency for International Development (USAID) Mission in Vietnam, Francis Donovan, Vietnam is the first country in Southeast Asia to create a PES policy. Successful implementation of this policy will help mobilise all resources for forest protection, he added.

Jim Peters, Director of the Asia Regional Biodiversity Conservation Programme (ARBCP), spoke highly of Vietnam’s efforts in financing forest environmental services.

The Central Highland province of Lam Dong and the north-western province of Son La, where the pilot PES policy is being implemented, have established a mechanism for scientific exchange and successfully managed payment methods between sellers and buyers, he said.

Emphasising the great benefits that the implementation of the PES policy will bring to the national economy, Peters also warned of difficulties and challenges during the process.

Participants at the seminar, jointly held by MARD, the German Technical Cooperation (GTZ) organisation and WINROCK International, focused discussions on levels of payments for forest environmental services as well as payment methods.

An international conference on experiences in implementing the PES policy is expected to be held in Vietnam in June.