On 28 November, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine approved an update to the Operational Plan for the Implementation of the State Forest Management Strategy of Ukraine until 2035 for the period 2025-2027. The goal is to ensure the sustainable development of forestry, increase the resilience of forests to climate change, and create a transparent forest resource management system. The document was prepared by the Ministry of Economy and defines specific tasks and measures necessary for implementation.
The Operational Plan provides for:
- improvement of the forest management and monitoring system (including national inventory);
- creation of a modern digital infrastructure for forest management;
- restoration of forests in de-occupied territories;
- increase in forest cover;
- adaptation of forests to climate change and preservation of biodiversity.
Approval of the Operational Plan will ensure:
- implementation of the Forest Management Strategy until 2035;
- effective and transparent forest management;
- increase in forest area and restoration of destroyed areas;
- improvement of forest resilience to climate change.
According to the Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDNA4), prepared by the World Bank in collaboration with the Government of Ukraine, the European Union and the United Nations, the total damage to the forest sector, including burned areas, air pollution and protected areas damaged by the breach of the Kakhovka hydroelectric dam, is estimated at USD 28 billion. “The forest strategy is not about individual logging or planting. It is about the future of the economy and the security of the state. Ukraine is transitioning to a European model of forest management that is transparent, digital and focused on sustainable development. The approval of the Operational Plan allows for the systematic implementation of forest restoration, particularly in de-occupied territories, and makes the forestry sector financially stable and efficient,” emphasised Deputy Minister of Economy, Environment and Agriculture Taras Vysotsky.
The State Forest Management Strategy until 2035 has an update mechanism – every three years, the Government approves a separate operational plan that details specific measures, deadlines and responsible executors. The approval of the Operational Plan for 2025-2027 is the second cycle of the Strategy’s implementation (the first was for 2022-2024).
For reference
The State Forest Management Strategy of Ukraine until 2035 was approved by the Government in 2021. The document defines a long-term vision for the development of the forestry sector and Ukraine’s integration into European standards of sustainable forest management. The goal of the Strategy is effective, transparent and sustainable forest management, increasing their resilience to climate change, digitisation of the sector and reducing corruption risks.
