The International Day of Forests was commemorated in Kokopo on Thursday, March 21st.
Attended by the PNG Forest Authority and the East New Britain Provincial Administration, the event was also witnessed by students and members of the public at Kokopo Market.
The International Day of Forests was commemorated under this year’s theme of ‘Forests and innovation: new solutions for a better world’, which was aimed at promoting the conservation and sustainable management of all types of forests ecosystems for their environmental, economic, social and cultural values.
ENB Forest Authority Manager, Peter Ramute, urged people to take ownership of the forests and contribute towards finding solutions to improve their livelihoods.
“The total forest cover in PNG is 37.2 million hectares and intact forests take up 33.3 million hectares,” he outlined.
“Grassland consists of 3.4 million hectares. Forests stabilises our climate, nurture our biodiversity and sustain our livelihoods. Forests are part of the mitigation process to counteracting global warming and melting of icebergs.”
Ramute further encouraged everyone to work together to preserve and protect their forest recources.
Acting Kokopo City Manager, Darius Kunai, said forests play an irreplaceable role in the daily lives of human beings, one of which is safeguarding the environment that humans depend on.
He urged the government, non-government organisations and companies to work together and develop policies and practices to promote environmental preservation and protection.
He further encouraged parents to teach their children about the importance of planting trees.
The event concluded with the distribution of trees like palm and teak trees to the general public.
The International Day of Forest is celebrated annually to raise awareness about the importance of forests. It was established by the United Nations in 2012 to encourage countries to undertake local, national and international efforts to organise activities involving forests and trees, such as tree planting campaigns.