Southcentral region makes efforts to rebuild green belt

Accounting for only 1% of the country's total forest acreage (14.4 million hectares), mangrove forests play an important role in mitigating the effects of climate change. These mangrove forests served as a green wall protecting coastal residents from storms and erosion and were home to many species of birds and fish, providing livelihoods for hundreds of households. Economic pressures, particularly the wave of shrimp farming expansion, infrastructure development projects and natural disasters, have led to the devastation of most primary mangrove forests in the southcentral region in recent years, seriously affecting the ecosystem. The region has been exerting efforts to restore the mangrove forest belt, initially contributing to restoring the coastal ecosystem, creating sustainable livelihoods, exploiting potentials for developing ecotourism from forests. VNA Photo