Viet Nam

This video introduces how green freight approaches can provide environmental and economic win-wins for the transport sector in the GMS.

Land use is constantly changing in the Greater Mekong Subregion. At the same time, land use planning processes are often poorly informed, risking decisions that may lead to social and environmental costs that outweigh intended benefits.

Rural communities in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) are vulnerable to climate-related disasters. In 2008, tropical cyclone Nargis killed 84,500 people and impacted the livelihoods of 2.4 million people. In 2011, large-scale floods in Thailand affected 14 million people and caused $45.7 billion in damages.

Viet Nam is a country with rich biodiversity, possessing natural ecosystems from tropical jungles to dry forests, mountains, wetlands, and marine ecosystems. Forests cover 43% of the land and provide ecosystem goods and services that are essential to sustain the livelihoods of much of the population.

Led by the Institute of Strategy and Policy on Natural Resources and Environment, Viet Nam’s Natural Capital Platform aims to integrate natural capital considerations into development planning.

Local authorities, forest owners, and development partners met to initiate a new project to develop and test an M&E framework for payments for environmental services in Quang Nam and Thua Thien Hue provinces.

This two-part workshop brought together government and private sector transport sector representatives to discuss the results, challenges and opportunities of the Core Environment Program’s GMS Green Freight Initiative.

The third and final workshop in CEP’s training module on integrating climate change adaptation into local planning focused on identifying and implementing adaptation options.

Senior environment and forestry officials from Yunnan and Guangxi met with representatives from the other five GMS countries to exchange experiences and lessons from biodiversity conservation work in transboundary landscapes.

More than 100 government planners and development partners shared experiences on how multicriterial spatial analysis (MCA) using GIS can help decision makers with environmental management.

Vietnamese government officials and development partners met to discuss arrangements to formalize a Natural Capital Platform (NCP).

This training workshop was the second in a series of three that aim to build the capacity of government planners in the GMS to work with communities to integrate climate change adaptation into local level development planning.

Viet Nam is in the process of developing an Environmental Protection Planning (EPP) Circular to improve environmental management within the country. This workshop aimed to build stakeholder awareness of environmental protection and planning and draws on international and national best practice and experience.

Viet Nam has dramatically reduced poverty over the past two decades through rapid economic development. However, this process has included some poorly planned industrialization, urbanization, and agricultural intensification, which has led to pollution, resource depletion, and environmental degradation.

A Green Freight and Logistics Day was held as a pre-event to the 9th Better Air Quality Conference in Buson, South Korea, to highlight green freight intiatives in Asia and key lessons and opportunities for future scaling up.

Truck drivers from over 100 freight companies in Lao PDR, Thailand, and Viet Nam have undergone eco-driving training as the Green Freight Initiative tests ways to lessen the environmental impacts of freight transport in the GMS.

This workshop was the first in a series of three that aim to build the capacity of government planners in the GMS to work with communities to integrate climate change adaptation into local level development planning.

The Lao People’s Democratic Republic has built a new road with help from ADB linking the tourist town of Luangprabang with the country’s border with Thailand. Finished in 2014, the 367-km road provides access to goods, services and jobs and new businesses are flourishing along its length.

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Viet Nam’s 10-year Land Use Plans undergo revisions every 5 years, a process led by the Ministry of Natural Resource and Environment (MONRE).

Government officials, international experts, and private representatives from Southeast Asian countries met in Bangkok for two days to develop a regional agenda to scale up ‘green freight’ in the region.

This ADB study focuses on ?ve countries of Southeast Asia that collectively account for 90% of regional GHG emissions inrecent years—Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Viet Nam. ...

This 2-day workshop brought together government and international organization representatives to share experiences, information, tools, and discuss collaborative opportunities to improve the sustainable management of important landscapes in the GMS.

With support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the GMS Core Environment Program is strengthening regional collaboration to manage key transboundary biodiversity landscapes in the GMS.

Addressing the many development and environmental challenges in the GMS will require finding ways for sectors to plan and work together more closely. Multisector planning approaches contribute greatly to strategic planning processes by bringing sectors together to discuss and understand core development challenges and to identify pathways to overcome these challenges. In doing so, they promote economic, environmental, and social sustainability. Multistakeholder dialogues and scenario-based modelling tools are essential to develop a shared understanding of core challenges, drivers of change, and alternative development pathways.

With the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) expiring, 2015 is a crucial year to further progress the global framework for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) launched at Rio +20 in 2012.

Increasing Investments in Natural Capital in the Greater Mekong Subregion

The Natural Capital Dialogue brought together senior GMS government officials, international experts and a wide range of stakeholders to discuss the significance of natural capital in the context of inclusive and sustainable development in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS). Occurring ahead of the 4^th GMS Environment Ministers’ Meeting (EMM4), the Natural Capital Dialogue presented an important opportunity to draw public and business sector attention to the need to increase investments in the Subregion’s natural capital.

Theme: Investing in Natural Capital is Investing in Youth

Overview

As emphasized in the Future We Want outcome document from Rio+20, youth are “custodians of the future” and have an essential role in helping achieve sustainable development. If engaged and empowered, GMS youth have the potential to drive the changes needed to ensure a sustainable future for their own and future generations. 

Every three years, environment ministers from the six Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) countries gather to take stock of environment challenges and opportunities, and set the direction for regional responses under the GMS Economic Cooperation Program.

Theme: Designing mechanisms and building partnerships for the strategic planning and management of transboundary and other biodiversity landscapes

Overview

Biodiversity landscapes constitute a large proportion of the natural capital remaining in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS). They are a rich repository of globally important biodiversity, including many endemic and endangered species, and provide vital ecosystem services. This wealth of natural capital underpins the subregion’s security in terms of energy, food, and water. Seven of these landscapes cut across international borders. These transboundary biodiversity landscapes (TBLs), which are the focus of the GMS Core Environment Program, lie in juxtaposition to the GMS economic corridors, providing both challenges and opportunities for their effective management and conservation.

Theme: Investing in Natural Capital: Public Private Cooperation for Future Prosperity in the Greater Mekong Subregion

Overview

The Fourth GMS Environment Ministers’ Meeting emphasized the need to strengthen collaboration between governments, development partners, business sector, and civil society in order to find ways to maintain and enhance the region’s natural capital stocks. A key step was the need to strengthen collaboration and coordination between businesses, government, and/or civil society in ways that are demonstrably good for business, local livelihoods and for the protection and enhancement of the subregion’s natural capital. In this context the Natural Capital Business Forum engaged the businesses in their capacity as a beneficiary of public sector investments as well as the investors in economic activities associated with natural capital.

In recent years, there has been increased global recognition about the important socioeconomic contribution of ecosystem services for rural livelihoods and broader society. This has helped drive countries to make greater efforts to more sustainably manage their natural capital – forest, land, and water resources and related ecosystem services. 

Rural communities throughout the world are seizing new opportunities to build livelihoods based on emerging niche markets that rely on and contribute to the sustainable management of natural resources. These include small, but growing markets for ecotourism and also non-timber forest products (NTFPs) including herbs, honey, and mushrooms, bamboo, rattan, medicines, and cosmetics.

This brief summarizes major achievements, challenges, and key recommendations from a review of Viet Nam’s payments for forest environmental services (PFES) program. Led by the Center for International Forestry Research and Viet Nam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, with support from the GMS Core Environment Progra...

Since 2011, Viet Nam’s payments for forest environmental services (PFES) program has generated $140 million for rural households to protect around 4 million hectares (40%) of the country’s forests.

This publication features ADB's support to the provincial authorities of Quang Nam in Viet Nam to scale up the implementation of payments for forest environmental services through a technical assistance financed by the Governments of Sweden and Norway. The project pilot-tested two innovations—the group approach and the use of a geographic information system—to speed up payments for forest environmental services planning and implementation in the province. Starting with five villages in Ma Cooih commune, the initiative expanded to include two more communes in the Song Bung 4 watershed. 

Under Viet Nam’s 2011 Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) decree, development plans of five years duration or more, including socioeconomic development plans (SEDP), are required to undergo an SEA. However, implementation of the decree is still relatively weak, with technical SEA capacity one of the major constraints.

CEP progress in Viet Nam during 2014 and plans for 2015 were the topic of a workshop in Hanoi held on Tuesday 19 August. Around forty participants attended, including government agriculture, environment, energy and planning officials, and international development partners from FAO, GIZ, JICA and Winrock.

This series of posters show how inefficient freight truck fleets in the GMS are impacting the environment, why greener trucks will benefit both businesses and environment, and how this will be achieved...

Development planning in the GMS is often fragmented, with ministries and sectors lacking the capacity, tools, or incentives to work together to meet sustainable development goals. When competing for the same natural resources, implementing one sector plan is often to the detriment of another. As a result, resource allocation can become inefficient, costly, and ultimately unsustainable.

This ADB video features coffee farmers in Viet Nam's Central Highlands joining in efforts to conserve forestland and biodiversity.

This animation describes the work of CEP in securing natural capital in the GMS.

While strategic environmental assessment (SEA) is a statutory requirement for most major strategic planning exercises in Viet Nam, there has been little guidance on how to apply SEA to river basin planning.

This report presents the methodology and lessons from a climate change adaptation study conducted by the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) Core Environment Program. The study yielded a framework and metho...

On 29–30 May, representatives from more than 13 countries, including from the GMS, met in Ha Noi, Viet Nam to exchange experiences and innovative ideas on how to integrate natural capital into development decisions.

ADB’s Sanath Ranawana (and CEP project officer) was a panelist at the Forests Asia Summit on May 6 2014 in Jakarta, Indonesia. During the ‘Investing in Landscapes for Green Returns’ panel, he discussed the role of public financing to support environmentally friendly private sector investments in Asia’s landscapes (3:35–13:25).

With support from the Core Environment Program, the Government of Viet Nam hosted a consultation workshop to introduce and gather feedback on a proposed strategic environmental assessment (SEA) of the country’s revised national power development plan (PDP VII).

This book is first in a series of a three-volume publication on the environments of the poor, and contains selected papers on Southeast Asia, East Asia, and the Pacific from a conference organized in 2...

Overview

This training is a five-day intensive program designed to enhance understanding of energy and transport practitioners on issues and challenges which arise from climate change. It is a collaborative learning program in partnership with GMS Phnom Penh Plan (PPP) for Development Management.

The freight sector in the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) is emerging as a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions, driven in part by regional economic cooperation and the associated development of economic corridors. In order to test interventions that could mitigate increases in emissions from freight transport, pilot projects are being implemented in Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam through the GMS Green Freight Initiative .

This animation describes the work of CEP in securing natural capital in the GMS.

This three-day conference held in Chiang Rai was organized by the Asia-Pacific Adaptation Network to facilitate discussion and share lessons about climate change adaptation, resilience and urban biodiversity in Southeast Asia.

ADB  SPEECH- 4 December 2013

Welcome remarks by ADB President Takehiko Nakao at the Second Asian Judges Symposium on Environment:
Natural Capital and the Rule of Law held in Manila, Philippines on 2 December 2013

A workshop to synergize landscape and livelihood activities between CEP and the Biodiversity Conservation Corridors project (BCC) in the provinces of Quang Nam, T.T. Hue and Quang Tri was held in Hue, Viet Nam. The workshop, which included provincial and central government representatives, aimed to raise awareness about the biodiversity conservation pilot projects conducted during CEP Phase I and to discuss how planned activities under CEP Phase II can align with ongoing BCC work.

An Asian Judges Network on Environment was officially launched at the Second Asian Judges Symposium on Environment to be held in Manila, 2 to 5 December.

This animation produced by the James Hutton Institute explains why Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) schemes are attracting increasing interest as policy mechanisms to improve conservation and achieve sustainable development outcomes. PES initiatives aim to reach mutually beneficial agreements between providers and users of ecosystem services, entailing a reward mechanism for ecosystem managers for maintaining or improving the provision of the services valued by beneficiaries.

The Global Forum on Natural Capital was organized to attract business and sustainability leaders around the globe to discuss the value of natural assets (clean air, clean water, forests) and progress with factoring ...

Chief justices from the region met last week to explore legal responses to pressing environment issues such as cross border threats from climate change, pollution, deforestation and the illegal trade in wildlife and timber.

This ADB book provides an energy outlook for the region up to the year 2035 to help identify policy, social, infrastructure, and technology issues that must be addressed to meet future energy needs of ...

The Core Environment Program (CEP) supported Viet Nam’s Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources to host the regional workshop: “Mainstreaming ecosystem-based approaches to climate change into biodiversity conservation planning in Viet Nam.”

The ADB annual Asian Development Outlook, generally launched in April, presents an analysis of developing Asia’s recent economic performance plus its prospects for the next 2 years. This Update s...

The Asia Low Emissions Development Strategies (LEDS) Forum aims to facilitate regional coordination; share tools, models, approaches, and best practices; and increase capacity and readiness of practitioners to lead and implement LEDS and green growth initiatives. Policymakers, donors, practitioners, and other experts involved in developing low-emission strategies in Asia will attend the annual event.

This workshop brought together government representatives and development partners to share experiences on measuring greenhouse gases from the transport sector. Naeeda Crishna Morgado, Climate Change M...

As part of a round of planning missions to GMS countries, CEP held a scoping mission to Viet Nam to consult with stakeholders on the program’s Phase II strategic planning, safeguards, and monitoring activities. 

Rural households and communities in the GMS employ a wide range of strategies to minimize the impact of climatic shocks. These include crop and labor diversification, personal savings, investments in semi-liquid assets such as livestock, and informal risk pooling arrangements among peers.

The freight and logistics sector in the GMS plays a pivotal role in supporting the expansion of trade, and in turn, economic growth. A 2010 Core Environment Program study of the GMS East-West Economic Corridor – connecting Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam - found that promoting green freight through improved logistics management and fuel efficiency measures could reduce GHG emissions and lower freight company fuel costs.

Forests in the GMS are important carbon sinks, provide valuable eco-system services, contain extensive and unique biodiversity, and are an important source of livelihood for millions of local people, many of whom live in poverty. The on-going destruction and damage to natural forests in the GMS through over-exploitation has long been one of the major environmental challenges facing the subregion. In response, GMS countries are engaging in REDD+ (“Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation”).

This ADB report was produced under the Technical Assistance Grant: Determining the Potential for Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) in Southeast Asia (TA 7575-REG), and is focused on an assessment of the...

This ADB paper examines the role of international trade in employment growth in micro- and small enterprises using a representative sample of manufacturing firms in six Southeast Asian countries

This ADB report examines prospects for ADB to ramp up efforts in the region for greater utilization of demand-side energy efficiency, the most cost-effective source of energy supply. The report further...

A workshop held in Ha Noi yesterday put forward the idea of green freight pilot projects for trucking SME companies in Viet Nam. Attended by 35 participants from transport authorities, freight companies, associations, universities and NGOs, the meeting was hosted by the Director General, Department of Environment, Ministry of Transport.

This paper shares findings from land demand allocation modeling used to assess pressures on hydropower catachments based on development scenarios in Viet Nam. The modeling was applied as part of a stra...

This paper presents findings from a strategic environmental assessment (SEA) of Viet Nam's Power Development Plan VII. The SEA analyzed social and environmental costs and benefits of potential power ge...

This brochure overviews the Core Environment Program; covering the development context, history of the program, areas of work and some major program results. Please find the brochure in Burmese, Chines...

One of the major successes of CEP Phase I was the scaling up of its biodiversity conservation corridor pilot work.  In 2011, ADB approved grants and loans worth $69 million for Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Viet Nam under a new project to further engage local communities in the sustainable management of important biodiversity landscapes.  

The North-South Economic Corridor (NSEC) – linking Kunming to Bangkok, Kunming to Hanoi, and Hanoi to Nanning – is one of the flagship investments under the GMS Economic Cooperation Program.

Rural communities in the GMS are particularly vulnerable to climate change. While there is considerable indigenous knowledge within communities on managing climate-related risks, understanding how a community’s vulnerability profile will change from climate and non-climate risks is essential for empowering local people to develop strategies for a climate-resilient future.

Viet Nam has a rapidly growing demand for electricity, with current growth rates of around 15% per annum expected to continue, or increase, for the foreseeable future. This reflects Viet Nam’s rapid progress in economic development and the country’s growing income, urbanization and changing consumption patterns.

With support from ADB, ‘economic corridors’ are being developed across the GMS to improve transport connectivity and facilitate trade.  An upsurge in traffic and development along these corridors is leading to increased greenhouse gas emissions and environmental changes. These need to be carefully managed to ensure environmental sustainability.

This  pilot site aims to enhance biodiversity connectivity between Bangliang Nature Reserve in Jingxi County of Guangxi Province and the adjacent Trung Khanh Nature Resrve in Cao Bang Province, Viet Nam. The establishment of a transboundary biodiversity corridor, with a protected core zone and sustainable use zone with agriculture, will provide an optimal habitat for wildlife, as well as the co-existence of human beings.

Biodiversity conservation corridors at this pilot site cover 130,827 hectares in Quang Nam and Quang Tri provinces. The corridors include part the Central Annamite mountains – ranked as a ‘critically important’ landscape due to the unique variety of species that inhabit this area.

A report documenting the achievements of the Biodiversity Conservation Corridors Initiative (BCI) from 2006-2011. It includes impacts and lessons learned, coverage of the eight pilot sites in Cambodia,...

This publication describes how strategic environmental assessments (SEAs) have been utilized by the Government of Viet Nam as an integrated part of their strategic power development plan, including fut...

This policy brief draws on current research to overview the anticipated climate change impacts in the GMS, particularly those relating to air pollution. In its key messages, the brief highlights ten ad...

A policy summary outlining key messages from the strategic environmental assessment (SEA) of hydropower in Viet Nam. Recommendations include: increased capacity building; addressing knowledge and data ...

This country outlook paper was produced by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) with support from CEP.  It examines the impacts of population growth, rapid economic de...

The forest of the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) nurture a remarkable biodiversity and provide resources vital to human welfare and the region's economic prosperity. But these same forests are fragmenting and disappearing under pressure from rapid economic development, land conversion, and overuse.

Conserving our Natural Heritage introduces the GMS Core Environment program, a joint action plan by Mekong countries to improve environmental management and promote sustainable development across the region.

A 2007 status report on six pilot sites of the Biodiversity Conservation Corridors Initiative (BCI) implemented by the Core Environment Program (CEP). The report covers background information on each o...

A report on the environmental performance assessment (EPA) conducted in Viet Nam. The assessment covers seven environmental concerns: forest resources, land degradation, threats to coastal zones, threa...