Korea's forest agency opens Laos office to scale up carbon reduction project

Officials from the Korea Forest Service and the Lao Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry pose for a photo during the opening ceremony of a regional office for the REDD+ international carbon reduction project held in Phongsaly province on Tuesday. (Korea Forest Service)

The Korea Forest Service said Tuesday it has opened a local office in northern Laos to oversee a joint project aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation.

The office, located in Phongsaly province, began operations on Jan. 9 and will serve as the on-site base for a Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) project carried out by South Korea and Laos.

The Korea Forest Service has worked with Laos on REDD+ initiatives since 2018, when it launched a pilot project in Champasak province in southern Laos in cooperation with the Lao Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. Building on those results, the two countries signed a memorandum of understanding in 2023 to expand the effort into a large-scale, subnational REDD+ project under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.

The project covers about 1.5 million hectares of forest in Phongsaly province and is designed to help both countries meet their nationally determined contribution (NDC) targets. To support implementation, the Korea–Laos REDD+ Cooperation Center was established last year.

Following the opening of the local office, forestry experts from both countries conducted on-site assessments to identify the drivers of deforestation and forest degradation. They also met with provincial authorities and local communities to discuss cooperation measures.

Based on the findings, the Korea Forest Service plans to draw up a detailed implementation strategy to enhance forest carbon stocks. The provincial project management unit will work closely with the cooperation center to carry out conservation activities, promote sustainable forest management, build local capacity and monitor emissions reductions.

“International forest carbon reduction projects are increasingly recognized as cost-effective climate mitigation tools,” said Cha Jun-hee, director of the Global Forest Resources Division at the Korea Forest Service. “Starting with the Laos project, we plan to expand large-scale REDD+ initiatives to help address the climate crisis and contribute to South Korea’s greenhouse gas reduction goals.”