Vietnam to honour 21 organisations, individuals for contributions to wildlife conservation

Muntiacus truongsonensis seen in Saola reserves in Thua Thien-Hue province (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) – Twenty-one organisations and individuals with outstanding contributions to wildlife conservation in the 2010-2020 period will be honoured, according to the Vietnam Environment Administration under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

The eight organisations to be honoured are the Institute of Ecology and Biological Resources, the Vietnam - Russia Tropical Centre, the Pu Mat National Park, the Research Institute for Marine Fisheries, the Cat Tien National Park, the Hanoi Zoological Gardens Company Limited, the Animals Asia, and the Con Co Island Marine Reserve.

Meanwhile, the 13 individuals are mainly scientists working in the field of natural ecological environment and biodiversity.

As of October 2020, Vietnam’s forest coverage had reached 41.89 percent, or over 13.8 million hectares. The country owns 173 conservation zones with a total area of over 2,500 hectares, including 33 national parks and 66 nature reserves.

According to the sixth national report on biological diversity, Vietnam now has 51,400 species of fauna and flora, including about 7,500 strains of microorganisms, 20,000 flora species, 10,900 terrestrial animal species, and 2,000 invertebrate and freshwater fish species.

During 2014-2018, a total of 334 new species of fauna and flora were discovered in Vietnam./.

VNA