Hanoi (VNA) - Myanmar has recently designated twonew public forest areas in the western state of Chin's Paletwa Township and inthe west-central region of Magway's Gangaw Township.
According to Xinhua news agency, the Southeast Asian nation’sMinistry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation announced theyconsist of the 4,988 acres Paletwa and the 8,400 acres Pawle-Watchipaforest in Gangaw.
The designation of the protected areas aims at conservingwatershed areas, mitigating climate change, protecting biodiversity, ensuringsoil conservation and fulfilling the needs of local residents, the ministrysaid.
A total of 11 protected forest areas have been designatedacross the country so far this year, according to Maung Maung Kyaw, a directorof the Forest Department.
In the 2020-2021 fiscal year, Myanmar had a total of 67,559.66square miles of reserved forest and protected public forest areas, or about 25%of the country's national territory, official data showed./.
Myanmar prohibits foreign currency in local payments
The Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM) has banned the use of foreign currency for local payments to stabilise the foreign exchange rate in the country, reported Xinhua news agency.