Laos is one of eight countries selected by the World Bank (WB) for the Forest Investment Programme, which aims to reduce deforestation and forest degradation and promote sustainable forest management, leading to emission reductions.

Director General of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry's Forestry Department, Dr Silavanh Sawathvong, said the programme is a pilot project of the WB, which has provided funding of US$348 million.

“We will receive about US$30 million for the implementation of this project in Laos,” he said.

The other seven countries to benefit from the programme are Brazil, Indonesia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Mexico, Ghana, Peru and Burkina Faso.

The project's aim is to support the countries in their efforts to reduce deforestation and the release of greenhouse gases to address the climate change challenge.

The total forest coverage across the world is estimated at about 4 billion hectares, but 14 million hectares of forest are cut down each year.

Worldwide, it is estimated that 20 percent of greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere – the principal cause of global climate change – come from deforestation and forest degradation.

Joining this programme will be beneficial for Laos, especially as the country is also a member of the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF).

According to the department, the FCPF is now working in readiness to sell carbon credits as of 2013.

The FCPF will receive grant assistance and a loan from the Multilateral Development Banks, which include the WB Group and Asian Development Bank.

The FCPF will offer carbon credits to encourage reductions to greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and degradation in Laos to assist in forest management and rehabilitation.

Laos is working hard on forestry preservation to help limit global climate change through the release of greenhouse gases.

Selling carbon credits will be a good way for Laos to help local people protect the nation's forests.

The department also held a meeting on the first joint mission of the Forest Investment Programme from June 6-7 in Vientiane.

At the Forest Investment Programme Pilot Country Meeting held in Washington D.C., US, in 2010, each participating country was advised on the need to finalise their budget and strategic plans for the programme by November this year.

Dr Silavanh said the WB will provide funding of over US$227,000 for development of the strategic plan.

Laos lost about 134,000 hectares of forest each year from 1992 to 2002. Moreover, more than 40 tonnes of greenhouse gases were released into the atmosphere due to deforestation during this time.

The ministry said Laos has undergone widespread deforestation, with forest cover falling from 64 percent in 1960 to 47.2 percent in 1992, and 41 percent in 2001 .