Plans and measures to implement the Paris Agreement on climate change in the northern part of Vietnam were the focus of a conference held in Hanoi on August 29.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Nationally Determined Contributions Partnership (NDC-P) and Germany’s Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB) worked together to organise the event.

Participants discussed the State management on climate change and Vietnam’s plan to implement the global climate change pact. They examined climate change scenarios and impacts on the northern region and the Red River Delta, and ways to mobilise financial resources to cope with climate change.

The northern mountainous province of Bac Kan shared its experiences in coping with climate change and building a plan to carry out the Paris agreement.

Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Vo Tuan Nhan said after approving the Paris agreement on October 31, 2016, the Government Prime Minister assigned ministries, sectors and localities to develop specific plans and actively integrate climate change response into socio-economic investment and development schemes.

At the same time, the PM asked the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to organise training conferences on the agreement’s implementation for localities in the north, central and southern regions. The ministry is also tasked with studying new models and approaches to tackle climate change.

Jenty Kirsch-Wood, a representative from the UNDP said the agency has launched some important projects to support the Vietnamese Government in implementing its action plan to realise the Paris Agreement.

The UNDP is committed to supporting innovative measures that pave the way for new partnerships with stakeholders, she said, adding that the agency wants to cooperate with the private sector to reduce research and development costs and deploy cutting edge technology that is adapted to Vietnam’s unique conditions.

The conference, the third of its kind, was held following similar events in the central region on July 28 and the southern region on August 18.

The Paris Agreement, which was adopted during the 21st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 21) in December 2015, entered into force on November 4, 2016. 

It is the first legally binding document on climate change that applies to all parties.

VNA