The information was announced at a Friday meeting by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) which reviewed the first three years of implementing a prime ministerial initiative on planting one billion trees in the 2021-2025 period.
According to MARD, nearly 770 million trees have been planted between 2021 and 2023, exceeding the plan by 121 percent.
About 76.20 percent of the USD388 million raised for the project came from ODA and private funding, with the remainder sourced from the state budget.
Provinces that have grown the largest number of trees include northern Lao Cai and Phu Tho provinces with 61 and 52 million trees, respectively. The Mekong Delta province of Long An contributed 45 million trees, the Central Highlands province of Gia Lai 37 million, and the central province of Nghe An 34 million.
MARD has set a goal to grow 492 million more trees in the 2024-2025 period, including 98,210 hectares of newly planted forests equivalent to over 216 million trees.
The project, however, is facing some challenges, including a shrinking land fund for new forest planting and slow allocation of investment capital for annual forest development, the ministry said.
MARD's Minister Nguyen Quoc Tri suggested units and localities involved review and assess the results achieved so far and continue planting trees according to the approved plan.
"It's also necessary to promote public awareness and participation in the work," he said, highlighting the importance of flexibility and proactiveness in the implementation of the initiative.
