Decision No. 304/2005/QD-TTg On piloting the transfer of forests and the allocation of forest protection to households and communities of ethnic minorities residing in villages in the Central Highlands provinces

DECISION OF THE PRIME MINISTER

Regarding the pilot program for transferring forests and allocating forest protection responsibilities to households and communities of ethnic minorities residing in villages in the Central Highlands provinces.

PRIME MINISTER

Pursuant to the Law on Organization of the Government dated December 25, 2001;

Based on the Land Law dated November 26, 2003;

Pursuant to the Forest Protection and Development Law dated December 3, 2004;

Pursuant to Decision No. 168/2001/QĐ-TTg dated October 30, 2001 of the Prime Minister on long-term orientation, five-year plan 2001-2005, and basic solutions for economic and social development in the Central Highlands region;

At the request of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development,

DECISION:

Article 1. Pilot implementation of transferring forests and allocating forest protection responsibilities to households and communities of ethnic minorities residing in villages in the Central Highlands provinces.

Article 2. Objectives:

1. To create conditions for stabilizing and improving the living standards of ethnic minority groups residing in the Central Highlands provinces, with priority given to solving issues for ethnic minority groups specified in Decisions No. 132/2002/QĐ-TTg dated October 8, 2002 and No. 134/2004/QĐ-TTg dated July 20, 2004 of the Prime Minister (hereinafter referred to as Decisions No. 132 and 134) concerning land allocation for housing and production purposes for ethnic minorities in place in the Central Highlands and certain support policies for land for production, housing, houses, and drinking water for poor ethnic minority groups with difficult living conditions.

2. To protect, restore, and develop forests in the Central Highlands sustainably. Accelerate the pace of implementing socialization in forestry so that forests and forest lands have genuine owners.

Article 3. Guiding Principles:

1. Transferring forests and allocating forest protection responsibilities must ensure the creation of conditions for stabilizing and improving the living standards of ethnic minorities in place, primarily those households belonging to the target groups specified in Decisions No. 132 and 134 in the Central Highlands provinces; the forests transferred and protected must be stable and developing.

2. The process of transferring forests and allocating forest protection responsibilities must be conducted democratically, respecting the customs and traditions of ethnic minorities, and procedures must be simple and suitable for the realities of ethnic minorities in place.

3. Integrate programs and projects within the area, linking them with the transfer of forests and allocation of forest protection responsibilities to use state support funds effectively in these programs.

Article 4. Recipients and Limits for Transferring Forests and Allocating Forest Protection Responsibilities:

1. Types of forests eligible for transfer and allocation:

a) Forests allocated for protection: These include special-use forests, protective forests, and natural forests classified as productive forests with rich or medium reserves but currently closed off. These types of forests are funded by the state budget for protection.

b) Forests transferred for management:

- Natural forests currently planned as productive forests and other types of forests reclassified as productive forests but not included in the aforementioned protected forests.

- Areas of forest land planned for planting productive forests.

- Productive forests managed by forest farms or companies, reorganized according to Government Decree No. 200/2004/NĐ-CP dated December 3, 2004.

- Sacred forests, cemeteries, protective forests guarding water sources, etc., managed by village communities or People's Committees.

2. Recipients of forest transfers and allocations for protection:

a) Households of ethnic minorities currently residing in communes with forests who wish to receive forest transfers and protection allocations; priority is given to poor ethnic minorities in place belonging to the target groups specified in Decisions No. 132 and 134 of the Prime Minister.

b) Communities of ethnic minorities living in villages with similar customs, traditions, and needs for forest transfers and protection allocations.

3. Limits for forest transfers and protection allocations:

a) Forest transfers: Based on the commune's forest fund, planned forest land for productive forests, the number of households (belonging to the target groups of Decisions No. 132 and 134) and communities in the commune wishing to receive forest transfers, the People's Committee of the commune shall formulate a plan for forest transfers ensuring that the area of forest allocated to a household does not exceed 30 hectares (according to the Land Law of 2003); if there is agricultural land within the transferred forest area, the average forest area allocated per household should not exceed 25 hectares; the area of forest allocated to communities depends on the forest fund and the community's need for forest allocation.

b) Forest protection allocations: Based on the commune's forest fund (special-use forests; protective forests; natural forests classified as productive forests with rich or medium reserves but currently closed off, and productive forests under the management of state-owned forest farms and farms), the number of households (belonging to the target groups of Decisions No. 132 and 134) and communities wishing to receive forest protection allocations, the forest owners shall lead the coordination with the People's Committee of the commune to formulate and implement forest protection allocations for the recipients. The area of forest allocated for protection to a household should not be less than the national average of 15-20 hectares per household; the area of forest allocated for protection to communities depends on the forest fund and the community's need for protection allocation.

Article 5. Benefits for individuals assigned forest land and production forest planting land:

1. Enjoy all products harvested from the assigned forest area.

2. Receive support for forestry seedlings according to the production forest planting process and agricultural production support according to the state's forestry promotion and agricultural promotion policies.

3. If they are poor households suffering from hunger, they will be subsidized with 10 kg of rice per person per month to alleviate hunger until they can self-sustain their food supply (the duration of the rice subsidy is decided by the Provincial People's Committee).

4. Households assigned forest land and production forest planting land who are subjects of Decisions No. 132 and No. 134 continue to enjoy the policies stipulated in these decisions, specifically as follows:

a) Support of VND 5 million per household for building housing.

b) Support of VND 5 million per hectare for clearing agricultural production land.

c) Support of VND 400,000 per household for constructing water storage tanks.

5. Enjoy other preferential policies as currently prescribed by the State.

Article 6. Benefits for individuals receiving contracts to protect forests:

1. Enjoy a forest protection contract payment of VND 50,000 per hectare per year.

2. Receive support for forestry seedlings according to the production forest planting process (if there is a need to plant forests or enrich contracted forests) and agricultural production support according to the state's forestry promotion and agricultural promotion policies.

3. If they are poor households suffering from hunger, they will be subsidized with 10 kg of rice per person per month to alleviate hunger until they can self-sustain their food supply (the duration of the rice subsidy is decided by the Provincial People's Committee).

4. Households receiving contracts to protect forests who are subjects of Decisions No. 132 and No. 134 continue to enjoy the policies stipulated in these decisions, specifically as follows:

a) Support of VND 5 million per household for building housing.

b) Support of VND 5 million per hectare for clearing agricultural production land (only applicable in buffer zones of special-use forests or less critical protective forests, if conditions for agricultural production are met, the household must report to the forest owner, who then reports to the competent authority for permission before clearing can occur).

c) Support of VND 400,000 per household for constructing water storage tanks.

5. Enjoy other preferential policies as currently prescribed by the State.

Article 7. Obligations of households and communities when assigned forests or contracted to protect forests.

1. Manage, protect, and use forests in accordance with the purpose and boundaries specified in the forest assignment decision of the competent state agency and in the forest protection contract.

2. Organize production and development of forests according to technical procedures, regulations, management and protection policies for forests, and laws on forest protection and development.

3. Fulfill related obligations as generally prescribed locally.

Article 8. Tasks of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development:

1. Promptly direct the People's Committees of the Central Highlands provinces to review and re-plan various types of forests; clearly define the areas of each type of forest: special-use forests, protective forests, natural forests that are production forests with rich or moderate reserves but must close the forest, production forests, and land planned for production forest planting to serve as a basis for assigning and contracting forest protection. This must be completed by the first quarter of 2006.

2. Promptly review the Proposal for Reforming, Reorganizing, and Developing State Forestry Enterprises (according to Decree No. 200/2004/NĐ-CP dated December 3, 2004 of the Government) and submit it to the Prime Minister for approval in 2005.

3. Develop procedures and handbooks guiding methods for piloting the assignment of forests and contracting forest protection; guide and direct forestry and agricultural promotion work.

4. Direct and inspect the implementation of the pilot project of assigning land and forests and contracting forest protection as stipulated in this Decision; handle arising issues within its jurisdiction; issues exceeding jurisdiction shall be reported to the Prime Minister for consideration and decision.

5. Coordinate with relevant ministries, sectors, and localities to organize mid-term reviews, final summaries of the pilot projects, and propose subsequent policies for submission to the Prime Minister for consideration and decision.

Article 9. Tasks of the Ministries and Sectors:

1. The Ministry of Planning and Investment and the Ministry of Finance shall balance the budget and ensure that the pilot program of entrusting forests and allocating forest protection to households and communities in villages inhabited by ethnic minorities in the Central Highlands provinces is completed on schedule according to the approved plan by the competent authority.

2. The Ministries of Home Affairs, Natural Resources and Environment, Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, the Committee for Ethnic Minorities, and other relevant ministries and sectors shall, based on their respective functions assigned, coordinate with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to guide the provincial People's Committees in implementing this Decision.

Article 10. Tasks of the People's Committees of the Central Highlands Provinces:

1. Direct the forest owners to develop plans for allocating forest protection to households and communities in villages, submit these plans to the provincial People's Committee for approval, and organize their implementation within the province.

2. Direct the county-level People's Committees to guide communes in developing plans for entrusting forests to households and communities, submit these plans to the county-level People's Committee for approval, and organize their implementation within the commune area.

Article 11. Implementation Schedule:

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, relevant ministries and sectors, and the People's Committees of the Central Highlands Provinces shall proactively coordinate to implement the entrustment of forests and allocation of forest protection according to the contents of this Decision and complete the process by the third quarter of 2006.

Article 12. Effectiveness and Responsibility for Enforcement:

This Decision takes effect fifteen days from the date of publication in the Official Gazette.

This Decision replaces Decision No. 1174/QĐ-TTg dated November 7, 2005 of the Government Prime Minister.

The Ministers of Agriculture and Rural Development, Finance, Planning and Investment, Home Affairs, Natural Resources and Environment, Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, the Committee for Ethnic Minorities; heads of relevant agencies, and Chairmen of the People's Committees of the Central Highlands Provinces are responsible for enforcing this Decision./.