KFS proposes half a million ha of plantations to Myanmar



The Korea Forest Service proposed tree plantations on 500,000 hectares of land in Myanmar for mutual economic and environmental benefits in the Seventh Korea-Myanmar Forestry Cooperative Committee Meeting on July 26.

In the biennial meeting held in Nay Pyi Taw, the capital of Myanmar, KFS Deputy Minister Kim Nam-gyun made the proposal to U Win Tun, Union Minister for the Ministry of Environmental Conservation and Forestry, with a view to invigorating Korean private sector’s forest investments in Myanmar and the subsequent economic growth in the Southeast Asian country.

The proposed space for plantation accounts for 5 percent of the total land area of the Republic of Korea. The Myanmarese side agreed to designate a focal point for further discussion. Working-level discussions are expected to begin in September to prepare for a memorandum of understanding between the two sides to push the proposal forward.

The meeting discussed major joint projects currently underway in Myanmar, including the restoration of degraded forests in the context of REDD+ (Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation and other activities); measuring forest carbon stocks and deforestation in project sites; income-generating rural development activities; and REDD+ capacity-building and awareness-raising programs.

Myanmar noted that almost 80 percent of the project activities set aside for this year have been accomplished.

Myanmar also thanked Korea for the 600-ha forest plantations in the dry zone in central Myanmar, which was completed with the financial support of the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA). An additional plantation project is underway over 150 ha of land as part of the joint Dry Zone Re-greening Project.

U Win Tun, the Union Minister for MOECAF, is scheduled to visit Seoul to participate in the Special ASEAN-Korea Ministerial Meeting on Forestry set for Aug. 29-30, 2012.