ERPA funding helps maintain and improve the quality of natural forest ecosystems and contributes to biodiversity conservation.
According to the Thanh Hoa Forest Protection and Development, Environment and Natural Disaster Prevention and Control Fund Management Board, the total funding allocated to Thanh Hoa Province by the Central Fund from the Emission Reductions Payment Agreement for the North Central Region (ERPA) exceeds VND 219 billion. Based on this allocation, Thanh Hoa Province approved an implementation plan with a total budget of approximately VND 220.17 billion. To date, VND 203.91 billion has been identified for disbursement, while VND 15.8 billion remains unpaid because the eligible beneficiaries have not yet been identified.
As of mid-June 2026, total disbursements had reached VND 174.19 billion, equivalent to 85.42% of the amount identified for payment. Approximately VND 45.98 billion remained undistributed. This was because the ERPA financial plan for 2026 was only recently approved by the competent authority. The Fund Management Board is preparing the necessary procedures to disburse the funds to eligible beneficiaries and develop a detailed expenditure estimate.
From 2023 to 2026, ERPA funding in Thanh Hoa was distributed to several groups, including households and individuals, residential communities, organizational forest owners, and commune-level People's Committees entrusted by the State with forest management responsibilities. In 2023, payments were made to 23,986 households and individuals, 225 communities, 32 organizations, and 34 commune-level People's Committees. In 2024, the corresponding figures were 24,530 households and individuals, 250 communities, 31 organizations, and 36 commune-level People's Committees. In 2025, beneficiaries included 24,591 households and individuals, 261 communities, 30 organizations, and 28 commune-level People's Committees.
ERPA funding helps improve livelihoods, create jobs, increase incomes and raise living standards for forest-dependent communities. Photo: Quoc Toan.ERPA not only provides direct financial support to those responsible for forest management and protection but is also considered to have a positive impact on forest conservation and development. Payments help strengthen the accountability of forest owners, organizations, individuals and relevant agencies in forest management and protection, thereby maintaining and improving the quality of natural forest ecosystems and contributing to biodiversity conservation.
According to the Thanh Hoa Forest Protection and Development, Environment and Natural Disaster Prevention and Control Fund Management Board, the funding also helps improve livelihoods, create jobs, increase incomes and raise living standards for forest-dependent communities. By providing local people and forest owners with additional financial resources linked to their responsibility for protecting assigned forest areas, ERPA helps reduce pressure on forests from deforestation, illegal logging and the illegal trade in forest products, contributing to the protection of natural forests from encroachment and damage.
ERPA is an Emission Reductions Payment Agreement signed between Vietnam and the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF) of the World Bank. The agreement links payments to verified greenhouse gas emission reductions from forests, thereby mobilizing resources for forest protection and development while improving the livelihoods of forest-dependent communities and local people.
$ 1 = VND 26,090 (Source: Vietcombank).