The Green Climate Fund (GCF) will continue supporting the central province of Quang Nam’s climate change adaptation efforts this year by sponsoring the construction of flood-proof houses and the cultivation of mangrove forests.

Growing mangrove trees in Nui Thanh district, Quang Nam province (Photo: quangnam.gov.vn)

The financial assistance worth more than 12 billion VND (around 517,000 USD) is part of a project coordinated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and UN Development Programme (UNDP) to improve the resilience of vulnerable coastal communities to climate change’s impacts.

In 2019, 250 storm- and flood-resistant homes will be built, with needy households provided with 37 million VND (1,590 USD) each for construction. The project will also help grow 17.4 ha of new mangrove forests, while conserving 84.91 ha of existing forests in Nui Thanh and Thang Binh districts. The support will also run communication campaigns to raise awareness and training courses for forest owners and the public on the protection of mangrove forests.

Katharine Jenty, chief adviser of the project, said as the first to receive funding from the GCF in Vietnam and in Asia, the project will serve as a basis for the GCF to study future cooperation with Vietnam.

Last year, under the project, 65 flood-proof houses were completed in Duy Xuyen and Nui Thanh district, Tam Ky city and Dien Ban township.

The project, worth more than 29 million USD funded by the GCF through the UNDP and being implemented for 2017-2022, aims to raise local resilience to bad consequences of climate change via building safe homes, increasing the coverage of mangrove forests and providing trustworthy information about climate risks.

It is expected to benefit 28 coastal localities, with the focus on northern Nam Dinh province, central Quang Binh, Thua Thien-Hue, Quang Nam and Quang Ngai provinces, and Ca Mau province in the south.-VNA