THE Special ASEAN and
Special ASEAN-ROK Ministerial Meetings on Forestry for the implementation of
initiatives, cooperation and partnership towards sustainable forest management
were held in Seoul yesterday.
The Bruneian delegation was led by Minister of Industry
and Primary Resources, Yang Berhormat Pehin Orang Kaya Seri Utama Dato Seri
Setia Hj Yahya Begawan Mudim Dato Paduka Hj Bakar.
The ministers were updated on the outlook of the
forestry sector in Southeast Asia based on recent Food and Agricultural
Organisation (FAO) studies; the contribution of the forestry to ASEAN community
building to be realised by 2015 as well as achievements under cooperation in
forestry.
Congratulating the Korean government for successfully
hosting the ministerial meeting , the Bruneian minister, according to the press
statement, said "deforestation and forest degradation is currently a
global concern" as it caused problems associated with biodiversity loss,
climate change and other environmental issues.
The press release said that the agreement between
ASEAN-ROK was seen as an important initiative which could further strengthen
the cooperation and efforts particularly in the rehabilitation of degraded
forest land, prevention of deforestation and forest degradation. Therefore the
establishment of Asian Forest Cooperation Organisation (AFoCO) is relevant and
timely. The minister reiterated that "Brunei Darussalam is committed to
ensure that the country's forest resources are managed in a sustainable manner
within the context of Sustainable Forest Management practice".
The Brunei government's National Forest Conservation
policy has put strong emphasis on the need to conserve and protect the
country's green asset in order to ensure that the forest resources will
continue to play its role in providing benefit to society, economy and the
environment.
According to the press release, Brunei has
"successfully rehabilitated and re-greened about 400ha of degraded forest
land which was damaged due to forest fires; enriched about 11,000 hectares of
logged-over production forest, and established about 5,000ha of forest
plantation".
The Bruneian minister also informed the meeting that
the Government of Brunei Darussalam will continue to ensure that the country's
forest remains intact for the benefit of current and future generations and
become a safe haven for wild flora and fauna.
YB Pehin Hj Yahya said the establishment of AFoCO
would provide an opportunity for Brunei, as well as other ASEAN member states,
to share experiences and technologies concerning preservation of forests as
well as in a broader context addressing the emerging forestry and climate
change issues.
He expressed the full support of Brunei Darussalam
towards the establishment of AFoCO as it will enhance greatly the profile of
the forestry sector in the region. He also congratulated and commended the
Government of the Republic of Korea for initiating the Green Growth Initiative
as well as for their commitment to sharing their experiences in the
rehabilitation of forests, prevention of desertification and mitigation of the
climate change.
The Special ASEAN and ASEAN-ROK Meeting were
officially opened by Dr Don Koo Lee, Minister of Korea Forest Service in the
presence of the guest of honour, Korean Prime Minister Kim Hwang-Sik; ASEAN
ministers and designates; and senior officials from ASEAN Member States and
ROK.
The Special ASEAN Ministerial Meeting on Forestry was
chaired by Dr Ty Phommasack, Vice Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Lao
PDR.
The Bruneian minister had a bilateral meeting with the
Korea Forest Service minister to discuss forestry issues, potential bilateral
forestry collaboration, and to share knowledge and experience on sustainable
forestry management and conservation especially in the area of plantation
forest development, forest rehabilitation and reforestation activities. Other
Brunei officials in the delegation included Hjh Hasnah Ibrahim, Deputy
Permanent Secretary (Primary Resources Development Division); Hj Saidin Salleh,
Director of Forestry; and other senior officials from the ministry and Forestry
Department.
The Ministers also adopted the Special ASEAN-ROK
Ministerial Statement, a pledge of commitment to further enhance ASEAN-ROK
forest cooperation; promote capacity building and livelihood of
forest-dependent communities in the context of Sustainable Forestry Management.
WARDI BUNTAR
Business & Investment Opportunities
YourVietnamExpert is a division of Saigon Business Corporation Pte Ltd, Incorporated in Singapore since 1994. As Your Business Companion, we propose a range of services in Strategy, Investment and Management, focusing Healthcare and Life Science with expertise in ASEAN. We also propose Higher Education, as a bridge between educational structures and industries, by supporting international programmes. Many thanks for visiting www.yourvietnamexpert.com and/or contacting us at contact@yourvietnamexpert.com
No comments:
Post a Comment