The People’s Committee of Ho Chi Minh City and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) held a workshop in the city on October 26 to review a technical cooperation project to support the planning and implementation of nationally appropriate mitigation action in a monitoring, reporting and verification manner.

A corner of Ho Chi Minh City

Since 2015, JICA has partnered with the southern metropolis of Vietnam to improve awareness and capacity of monitoring greenhouse gas emissions across the city. The amount of CO2 in HCM City was estimated at 38.5 million tonnes in 2013, making up about 13 percent of the country.

Director of the municipal Department of Natural Resources and Environment Nguyen Toan Thang said the department has proposed local authorities monitor greenhouse gas emissions biennially, starting from 2016, based on the guidance of the JICA.

He noted that the city has joined the C40 Low Emission Vehicle Network to learn experience in coping with climate change from major cities around the world. 

Additionally, HCM City has expanded its cooperative ties with Japan’s Osaka city to carry out measures on waste treatment and ensure environmental hygiene, he said.

Director of the Department of Hydrometeorology and Climate Change under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment Nguyen Van Tue said the project will be expanded to other localities.

The ministry plans to use the JICA guidance as a reference for the implementation of the Decree building a roadmap for greenhouse gas emissions, which will be submitted to the Government in 2018, he added.

Yoshihiro Mizuno, a short term expert from JICA, advised HCM City and other Vietnamese localities to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions by reducing the use of electricity and fuel in buildings while installing solar energy systems on their roofs, using bus rapid transit and urban railways, collecting and recycling waste to create organic fertiliser and biogas.-VNA