Capacity building workshop: MoNREC UM attended and gave opening speech

Union Minister for Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation, U Khin Maung Yi, attended the opening ceremony of the Inception Workshop for the Project entitled “Capacity Building on Enhancing Resilience to Forest Fire, and Local Livelihood and Market Linkages (AFoCO/032/2022” held on Tuesday at the In-Gyin Hall of the Forest Department in Nay Pyi Taw.

During the opening speech, the Union Minister highlighted the severe impacts of forest fires, noting that they cause significant damage, disrupt ecosystems and biodiversity, and can also harm human health due to smoke pollution. He further explained that forest fires lead to widespread air pollution, with smoke spreading across regions, and emphasized that Myanmar is collaborating with Thailand, Laos, and China to address cross-border fire and smoke pollution issues. The main objective of the project, is to develop a forest fire management system, which includes enhancing the capabilities of staff and improving the socio-economic well-being of local communities through collective discussion and recommendations.

Following this, the workshop continued with discussions on reducing fire hotspots within Myanmar, controlling transboundary smoke pollution, and reviewing the country’s forest fire management and ongoing project activities. The participants also discussed the implementation of future actions related to forest fire prevention and management.