Actions against climate change must be faster, especially those to realise commitments to emission reduction, emphasised Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, head of the National Steering Committee for implementing Vietnam’s commitments at the 26th UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), while chairing the fifth meeting of the committee in Hanoi on October 2.

Opening the meeting, Chinh underlined that the meeting is taking place when the whole country is working hard to overcome consequences of Typhoon Yagi, showing the increasingly complicated and severe impacts of climate change and natural disasters.

He noted that following the COP26, Vietnam set up the steering committee, which has seen positive results from its operations. Vietnam’s international commitments have been made into laws, while action programmes, projects, and proposals to implement Vietnam’s commitments at COP26 have been developed and carried out, he said.

However, the PM held that compared to the actual demand and real developments, the actions must be more drastic.

Affirming that green development is an inevitable trend, the Government leader underscored that the implementation of the commitment to reduce emissions requires high determination, great efforts, drastic actions with focal points, with the clear tasks assigned to particular people, clear responsibilities, clear deadlines, and clear outcomes, striving to protect the environment and develop the country rapidly and sustainably to firmly enter the new era - that of national growth.

He stressed the need to mobilise all resources, the engagement of the whole society and the whole people, and promote international cooperation for the work.

Chinh requested members of the steering committee to evaluate the progress of the implementation of Vietnam’s commitments at COP26, thus defining difficulties and challenges and reasons behind shortcomings, and proposing solutions to ensure the country’s better performance of the work, especially in adjusting the legal framework to facilitate investment in energy transition.

According to the steering committee, after its fourth meeting, many mechanisms, policies, strategies, planning, plans, and specific projects have been developed with an aim to realise Vietnam’s commitments at COP26.

The Government has submitted to the National Assembly for approval the National Marine Spatial Planning, while issuing a decree on mechanisms for direct electricity purchase and sale, adjustments to the average retail electricity price and the electricity price framework, and encouraging rooftop solar power.

The PM has approved the hydrogen energy development strategy, national energy development strategy, automobile industry development strategy, and national energy master plan, among others, along with lists of major national energy programmes and projects.

Domestic and international banks in Vietnam have accompanied the Vietnamese Government in the work by actively participating in implementing many services and products along with green credit packages and green loans to serve green transformation and just energy transition.

Particularly, the implementation of the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) and Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC) has been on a right track. A plan to mobilise resources to implement JETP was announced by the PM at the COP28, proposing 37 investment projects already included in programmes and planning, 181 investment projects to call for funding, 61 technical assistance projects/project groups proposed by domestic and international partners, and 10 project idea groups proposed by the IPG Group and the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ). Vietnam has worked with Japan on promoting the implementation of the AZEC, the committee added./.