Climate change is a topic that has been discussed widely in recent years, bringing great concern to all countries around the world and a phenomenon that seriously impedes human development and efforts to protect human rights. More and more severe and unpredictable floods, droughts, and storms kill hundreds of thousands of people worldwide each year, leaving people homeless and exacerbating epidemics in the world.

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Therefore, countries, representatives of the United Nations and international organizations all emphasized the need to consider the issue of responding to climate change from the perspective of human rights, in the context of climate change makes serious impacts on many aspects of human rights. There are frequent discussions on the relationship between climate change and human rights on political forums.

The United Nations Human Rights Council has recently had an important discussion on the topic "Climate Change and Human Rights", in which it emphasizes that people hold the central position in the policy to respond to climate change.

At this event, Ms. Mary Robison, Chairman of the Mary Robison Foundation, one of the key speakers of the Conference, mentioned Vietnam as a typical case of combining human rights protection, including promotion of gender equality, in policies to respond to climate change.

Ms. Robison gave a concrete example of the effectiveness of a joint project between UNWOMEN and the Vietnam Women's Union in guiding women in Central Vietnam on flood preparedness measures.

Vietnam is one of the countries that are most severely affected by climate change and is facing many challenges in this issue. Over the past years, the National Assembly of Vietnam has always accompanied the Government in approving the improvement of the domestic legal system on environment; allocating appropriate resources to the implementation of climate change response and sustainable development programs.

Ca Mau Provinces loses 450ha of coastal land each year due to climate change.

Vietnam ratified and has strictly implemented the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement. Vietnam wants to promote cooperation in response to climate change as well as mitigate the impacts of climate change with the protection and promotion of human rights.

Climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction are vital to Vietnam's long-term sustainable and resilient development. Climate change is, to a certain extent, an unavoidable reality, but other actions are needed to help people adapt and increase resilience. Adequate education and employment is one of the factors that help build a social safety network in response to disasters. The most vulnerable are those most at risk from climate change, including poor women. Because when natural disasters occur, women are most vulnerable because they depend more on agriculture than men, leaving them at greater risk of loss of income and resources due to storms, floods and droughts.

Planting mangrove forest in Dong Rui commune, Tien Yen district, Quang Ninh Province.

Furthermore, poor access to resources, credit, markets and expanded services also makes women less resilient, especially those from poor households. The growing pressure on water and forest resources also often leads women to travel further to collect water or firewood, thus facing more health hazards and increasing the burden of unpaid care. From the perspective of climate-related risks, women may be vulnerable, but they are also the ones holding the solution. Practical experience in Vietnam shows that women can play a vital role in climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction, especially when men migrant to look for work.

With a humanistic and human tradition, the State of Vietnam has always committed to reaching gender equality and women's empowerment will be promoted or included in the implementation of the Paris Agreement and the Sendai Action Framework. The action plan aims to deliver positive social impacts through improved social equity and prioritized investments in the most vulnerable social groups and regions, including women, the poor, children, the elderly, ethnic minorities...

In particular, gender mainstreaming and promoting gender equality are a principle within Vietnam's adaptation component.

Thuy Nguyen