The Law on Forestry 2017 was approved by the 14th National Assembly of Vietnam at its 4th session on November 15, 2017, effective from January 01, 2019.
Article table of contents
Based on the inheritance of the Law provides for forest protection and development 2004 of Vietnam, the Law on Forestry 2017 of Vietnam consists of 12 chapters and 108 articles, providing for forestry planning; forest management; forest protection; use of forests; forest products processing and trade; rights and obligations of forest owners; forest valuation, investment and financial resources in forestry; science and technology and international cooperation in forestry; state management of forestry and forest rangers.
In comparison with the Law provides for forest protection and development 2004, the Law on Forestry 2017 of Vietnam supplements 04 new chapters, which are: forest products processing and trade; science and technology and international cooperation in forestry; forest valuation, investment and financial resources in forestry; state management of forestry and forest rangers.
Thus, the Law on Forestry 2017 of Vietnam has expanded the scope of regulation in the direction of chain linkage, forest creation, production and supply of forest products to meet the needs of the economy and society. Previously, the laws only focused on forest management, protection and development, but the Law on Forestry 2017 of Vietnam has expanded to trade in forest products. Especially, the institutionalization of building a forest economic development strategy in the context of deeper integration.
The Law on Forestry 2017 of Vietnam specifies 02 groups of forest ownership: Public forests of which the State is the owner representative and planted production forests owned by organizations, households, individuals and communities. Forest is a renewable natural resource, so clearly defining forms of forest ownership is in order to recognize the results of labor and investment results of forest people; create motivation to encourage organizations and individuals to invest in poor forests and benefit from forests; ensure better and more effective forest management.
The law also stipulates the form of forest leasing, replacing forest allocation with collection of forest use fees. The State leases production forests to economic organizations, households and individuals; for special-use forests, protection forests only apply the form of forest environment lease and belong to forest owners. The State ensures resources for the management, protection and development of special-use forests and protection forests and activities in service of state management of forestry. The State protects the legitimate rights and interests of organizations, households, individuals and communities engaged in forestry activities.
Notably, the Law on Forestry 2017 of Vietnam stipulates: Provincial-level People's Committees are entitled to allocate forests, lease forests, change forest use purposes to other purposes, and recover forests for organizations; leases land to foreign-invested enterprises in Vietnam to plant production forests.
The law also addresses the issue of socialization of forestry activities; ensures the harmony between the interests of the State and the interests of forest owners, organizations and individuals engaged in forestry activities. Besides, acts strictly prohibited in forestry activities are also specified as follows: illegally felling, deforesting, exploiting or encroaching forests; storing, trading in, transporting, processing, advertising, displaying, exporting, importing, temporarily importing, temporarily exporting or transiting forest products against regulations of Vietnam law and international agreements to which the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a signatory; illegally allocating, leasing out or appropriating forests, converting types of forests, repurposing of forests; etc.
Source: Superior people’s procuracy of Ho Chi Minh City
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- Law on Forestry 2017
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