PM attends launch of tree-planting festival in central province

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and delegates plant trees following the ceremony (Photo: VNA)

Phu Yen (VNA) – Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on February 20 attended the launch of a tree-planting festival in the south-central province of Phu Yen, on the occasion of the Lunar New Year, which is part of the activities to respond to a programme to plant 1 billion trees initiated by the Government leader.

Addressing the ceremony, PM Phuc said that along with action plans of the agricultural sector and localities in preserving and expanding the forest coverage, the programme is expected to contribute to green up barren hills as well as urban and rural areas across the country. Furthermore, low as its cost is, the programme is hoped to yield great benefit.

He called on all Vietnamese people, including Phu Yen locals, to engage in the programme.

The PM lauded Phu Yen in striving to plant 15 million new trees in the next five years.

At the ceremony, he presented Phu Yen with a number of plants of different resilient varieties.

Following the ceremony, the PM planted trees in Phu Thanh wards, Tuy Hoa city of Phu Yen province. Green trees will also be planted in Thanh An Tho historical relic site in An Dan commune of Tuy An district, the homeland of Tran Phu, the first Party General Secretary, and a relic site commemorating President Ho Chi Minh in Son Hoa district.

In the 2016-2020 period, Phu Yen planted more than 32,000 hectares of forests, with the forest coverage expanding from 36.4 percent in 2015 to 45.09 percent in 2020.

In 2021, along with the implementation of the 15-million-tree programme, the province will encourage locals to plant and take care of green trees, striving to raise forest coverage to 46 percent.  

At the ceremony, many companies and investors, including the budget carrier Vietjet Air, committed to present billions of VND to the tree-planting programme of Phu Yen.

In November 2020, speaking at a National Assembly session, PM Phuc suggested a programme to plant 1 billion green trees in five years to 2025. On December 31, 2020, he signed a directive on the organisation of the tree-planting festival and the strengthening of forest protection and development from the beginning of 2021.

He has also asked ministers, heads of ministry-level agencies and the People’s Committee of centrally-run cities and provinces to hold the festival in commemoration of President Ho Chi Minh who inspired the nation in tree planting./.

VNA