Press briefing of Cabinet Decision taken on 2024-01-01 (Subject to Confirmation at the next Meeting)

Preparation of the Reforestation and Tree Cover Act

- Under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, Sri Lanka has agreed to increase the forest cover of Sri Lanka to 32% of its total land area by the year 2030, and to increase the amount of carbon sequestrated by forests by 7% over the current situation. For that purpose, afforestation, replacement of degraded forests, and increase of forest cover in Government and private lands outside the forest are currently being carried out. These tree planting programmes are carried out with the participation of various parties, and although their benefits accrue to the entire nation, it has been recognized that the benefits of tree planting should be shared among all the parties who contributed to it, in order to encourage them. Currently, there are no legal provisions to provide products such as fruits, leaves, flowers, wood, resin obtained by tree planting in public places to the stakeholders who contributed to tree planting. Also, it has been identified the suitability of establishing a National Tree Planting Fund in order to have the support of the private sector, non-Governmental organizations and international organizations to obtain funds for the implementation of tree planting activities more effectively. Accordingly, the proposal made by the Minister of Wildlife and Forest Resources Conservation to introduce a new Act called "Reforestation and Tree Cover Act" incorporating provisions relating to the said tasks, was approved by the Cabinet.