March 21 is International Day of Forests.

The UN General Assembly held in 2012 designated March 21 as International Day of Forests.

It is aimed at deepening many people’s understanding of the importance of forests as indispensable and valuable wealth in the protection of natural environment, human life and socio-economic development.

Forests, a huge green treasure trove in the natural world, are the home of mankind and source of their activity for living.

The theme of International Day of Forests of 2025 is “Forests and Food”.

The forests, which account for about one third of the world land mass, provide a guarantee for making people obtain food safely and take essential nutrients. They are also closely related to the economic activities of people.

In developing countries, a large number of people live in tropical forest regions and savannas, obtaining food, firewood, building materials and medicines from forests. Fruits, nuts, insects and wild animals in the mountains provide energy, carbohydrates, fat, proteins, vitamins and minerals necessary for human health, enabling people to take sufficient nutrients.

Besides, forests serve to store the water resources essential for the growth of crops, check strong winds that damage the growth of crops and create microclimate, thus contributing to ensuring safe and high crop yields.

They fertilize the soil and prevent soil erosion while giving strong support to livestock farming by helping highly nutritious forage plants grow and creating pastures for livestock.

They enable people to live in good health in safe ecological environment as they prevent environmental pollution and all kinds of noise and offer clean living environment.

For this reason many countries in the world organize activities for creating and managing forests on the occasion of the day and hold events to commemorate it.

In the DPRK, where mountains account for most of its territory, the forest planting and protection have been pushed forward as an important policy of the state. Every year, many trees of good species, which are suited to the climate and soil conditions of the relevant regions and are of high economic value, are planted to improve the appearance of the land. Modern tree nurseries have been built in all provinces including the Central Tree Nursery to landscape the whole country. Different sectors work hard to reduce their dependence on forests.

The international community’s efforts to protect forest resources, which actively promote human existence and socio-economic development, are being constantly strengthened.