Aug 18, 2005. /Lesprom Network/. Viet Nam will work with five other countries to carry out a global forest management programme launched by the World Conservation Union (IUCN). The European Union-funded programme, entitled "Strengthening Voices for Better Choices", will be conducted between 2005 and 2009. It will identify obstacles and find innovative solutions to achieve effective legal agreements and other policies for sustainable forest management. In Viet Nam, the programme will focus on formulating plans for the use of land and forests, which will be implemented on a trial basis in the central province of Thua Thien Hue. It will assess the participation of departments, institutes, local authorities, non-governmental organisations, businesses and communities in the management, exploitation, protection and development of forests. The project will help countries manage forests better and ensure that the lessons learnt in one country are shared with other countries at the regional and global levels, as well as support the law on forest protection and development, and forestry trade in participating countries. The five other countries chosen by the IUCN to carry out the programme are the Democratic Republic of Congo, Brazil, Ghana, Tanzania, and Sri Lanka.