Kinh te & Do thi honors environmental commitment by planting mangroves
Today's mangrove planting reflects the Hanoi-based Kinh Te & Do Thi Newspaper's and the media community's commitment to supporting sustainable development goals and improving people’s lives.
THE HANOI TIMES — More than 2,000 white mangrove saplings were planted on June 14 in Lai Hoa Commune of Soc Trang Province’s Vinh Chau Town to protect coastal dykes, prevent erosion, and stabilize vulnerable coastal areas.
Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Kinh Te & Do Thi Newspaper Nguyen Xuan Khanh (white shirt) hands mangrove trees to the local people. Photo: Quang Tan/The Hanoi Times
The planting is part of the nationwide campaign “For a Green Vietnam,” aimed at promoting mangrove restoration and sustainable development in response to climate change.
This initiative in Lai Hoa Commune is one of many meaningful activities celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Vietnamese Revolutionary Press (June 21, 1925 – June 21, 2025).
The event was jointly organized by Kinh Te & Do Thi (Economic & Urban) Newspaper, ActionAid International in Vietnam, and the Aid for Social Protection Program Foundation Vietnam (AFV).
Ta Viet Anh, Chairman of the AFV Management Board, joins the planting activity.
It reflects a commitment from journalists and the media community, especially those from the Hanoi-based newspaper Kinh Te & Do Thi, to support sustainable development goals and improve people’s lives.
White mangroves naturally thrive on coastal mudflats and grow best in humid tropical and sub-equatorial climates. They prefer clay-rich soil and can tolerate salinity levels of 2.0% to 2.1% during the rainy season and up to 3.3% during the dry season.
The Vinh Chau Forest Protection Unit will provide technical guidance to local authorities and residents to monitor the saplings on a weekly basis during the first month. Weak or fallen trees will be replaced or mended to ensure their survival.
The local people and organizers plant mangrove trees to protect the coastline from salinity.
“This campaign is especially meaningful to us as journalists because we are marking the 100th anniversary of the Vietnamese Revolutionary Press," said Ta Viet Anh, Chairman of the AFV Management Board.
"This is an opportunity not only to reflect on the trajectory of the press, but also to inspire innovation and reaffirm the critical social role of the media in this new era," he added.
Mangrove forests play an essential role in protecting the livelihoods of local Vinh Chau communities. They cushion wave energy, protect sea dikes from tidal surges, regulate the climate, and absorb carbon.
Hoang Phuong Thao, Country Director for ActionAid International in Vietnam gives mangrove trees to the people of Lai Hoa Commune.
Mangroves also provide food, habitat and breeding grounds for rare species, support local livelihoods and supply timber and non-timber forest products.
Vinh Chau Town has a planned forest area of more than 4,300 hectares, 3,800 of which have already been planted.
The dominant tree species are mangroves, white mangroves, and nipa palms, all of which thrive in the area's natural environment.
*Mekong Delta provinces of Soc Trang and Hau Giang were merged into the centrally-governed southern city of Cantho to form a new city of Cantho following a decision made on June 12 by the National Assembly.
The authorities of Cantho has recently submitted the Ministry of Home Affairs a proposal on the organization of the city’s new commune-level administrations.
Accordingly, Cantho suggested that Lai Hoa Commune be one of the eight communes to keep its current names, as this complies with the regulations on administrative boundaries and population.
Meanwhile, administrative units at the district level, such as Vinh Chau Town, will be eliminated so that Can Tho can operate with a two-tier administrative system.
