KATHMANDU – Forest Minister Shakti Bahadur Basnet has unveiled a 16-point action plan on improving forest and environment sector. The action plan formulated with a concept of scientific management of forest and multi-dimensional use of forest.
At a time when Nepal’s forest area has shrunk to 66,10,000 hectors, Minister Basnet announced the action plan aiming to expand at least 0.1 percent of forest area in a year by adopting a proper management system.
The state will intervene in the encroached forest area, take ahead the management of agriculture forest and urban forest, promote community forest, private forest, Kabuliyat forest, partnership forest, and religious forest, as part of the plan to conserve and promote nature and environmental balance.
At a press meet organized at the Ministry of Forest on Friday to make public the current status of the forest and environment in Nepal, it was disclosed that a total of 25,00,000 hectors of forest managed by 25,000 communities as part of community management system.
“Apart from conserving the remaining forest, we will also encourage the efforts to make urban areas green and plan trees in farm lands,” said Minister Basnet.
According to Forest Ministry, 23.39 percent of Nepal’s land has been classified as protected forest such as national park, wildlife reserve, hunting reserve and protected area. Sixty percent of the people visiting these places are foreigners.
Forest sector accounts for 20 percent employment
If Minister Basnet’s statement is anything to go by, the forest sector in Nepal, besides making profit, has returned investment made in it.
He said the government is considering revamping the forest management so that the investment made in forest sector will contribute in the national economy. “We are currently importing 25,00,000 cubic feet timber annually. But we are going to create an environment wherein we will not only stop the import but start exporting,” Minister Basnet said. “Our timber consumption is only through firewood and grass. But the wood is getting decayed and going to waste, while the consumers are deprived of consumption,” he added. “We will take initiatives to make such stern law more practical. But this doesn’t mean emptying the forest.”
Minister Basnet announced that the government will create employment for 500,000 people in a year. He said the forest sector will create 20 percent of the pledged employment.
The action plan states that the government will develop and extend timber technology, adopt agricultural forest system in the Terai region for the production of high quality furniture wood, and implement one-door policy for effective sale and distribution of forest products.
“Apart from forest, Nepal has innumerable herbal plans. Unfortunately, they are being exported only as raw materials,” he noted. “Now we will refine those herbs in Nepal,” He went on to explain that the government has unveiled a sustainable and scientific action plan for establishing refineries in all seven provinces, and develop herbal pocket areas.
According to Minister Basnet, a forest authority will be formed for one-door policy and a concept of technical council has been put forward for filing the posts in forests
Grand campaign of clean environment
In the same manner, the government has been making preparations to launch Clean Environment Grand Campaign 2075 (2018) in order to raise awareness for controlling pollution.
Though the exact date of the campaign has been announced, the campaign will be initiated in coordination will all three levels of government.
