Protection and restoration of forests is one of the priorities of the government of the Republic of Armenia. A goal has been set to double the country's forest areas by 2050, AS Chair of Forestry Committee of RA Environment Ministry, Vladimir Kirakosyan, stated during the 18th session of the UN Forum on Forests held in New York.
It should be noted that according to the official data, Armenia's forest cover is 11.2 percent, but according to various expert estimates, this number makes up 6-8 percent.
Unfortunately, our country has long faced the problem of deforestation. This negative phenomenon was caused by a number of problems that arose during the first years of our country’s independence, especially in the energy sector. To these, however, was added the global trend of climate change as a decisive factor. Armenia is one of the most vulnerable countries to climate change in the Eastern Europe and Central Asia region. In this regard, the Government of Armenia is implementing a number of practical steps demonstrating the political will of the Government of Armenia to protect, restore and expand the forests in Armenia. In particular, an ambitious target has been set to double the country’s forests by 2050,” Vladimir Kirakosyan said emphasizing that cooperation with international organizations, particularly the United Nations, is of particular importance for Armenia.
“In this context, we would like to highlight the 8-year programme of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) together with a number of other international donors in the two most vulnerable regions of Armenia - Lori and Syunik. The aim of the initiative is to increase forest cover in Armenia by 2.5 per cent and to reduce the need of rural communities for firewood by more than 30 per cent.”
Every year, we continue to lose 10 million hectares of forests, an area roughly the size of the Republic of Korea. The world’s forests are at risk from illegal or unsustainable logging, forest fires, pollution, disease, pests, fragmentation, and the impacts of climate change, including severe storms and other weather events.
Forests cover 31 per cent of the Earth’s land area, contain over 80 per cent of the world’s terrestrial biodiversity, and store more carbon than the entire atmosphere. More than 1.6 billion people depend on forests for subsistence, livelihood, employment, and income.
May 12, 2023 at 14:47