The proposal was launched at a forum on public-private cooperation to develop multi-use values of forest ecosystem and National Parks Passport program that was held on July 11, aiming to create mechanisms to develop tourism infrastructure in Vietnam's national parks and nature reserves.
At the event, Department of Forestry under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Suntory PepsiCo Vietnam Beverage (Suntory PepsiCo) on cooperation to promote the cultivation of large timber forests and the planting of native medicinal plants combined with herbal remedies.
The two sides aim to reach a goal of planting new trees and enhancing the quality of 250 hectares of forests in the upstream and protected forest areas of Vietnam.
The National Parks Passport program aims to create mechanisms to develop eco-tourism in Vietnam's national parks and nature reserves, attract visitors to experience and explore the values of forest ecosystems, and establish a sustainable financial mechanism to support the development of tourism infrastructure in national parks and nature reserves.
Accordingly, domestic and international visitors who wish to visit national parks in Vietnam must have a "National Park Passport" (either in paper or electronic form). In the initial phase, this passport will be implemented at 34 national parks within Vietnam's special-use forest system open for tourism activities.
