Climate change adaptation – important pillar of Vietnam-Netherlands ties

Hanoi (VNA) – The strategic partnership in climate change adaptation and water management continues to be a priority and an important pillar of Vietnam-Netherlands relations, Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung has said.

Dung delivered the message while opening the 7th meeting of the Vietnam-Netherlands Inter-Government Committee on Climate Change Adaptation and Water Management in Hanoi on April 9.

The Deputy PM highlighted the fruitful and dynamic development of the friendship and cooperation between the two countries across spheres, from politics-diplomacy to trade-investment, education-training, science-technology, agriculture, and especially in the environmental sector.

The establishment of the strategic partnership in climate change adaptation and water management in 2010 is a milestone in the Vietnam-Netherlands relationship, he said.

Stressing the high efficiency of the partnership through an array of specific programmes and projects in Vietnam, Dung thanked the Dutch Government, ministries, agencies, experts and researchers for their support and contributions to sustainable development in Vietnam over the past years.

Vietnam and the Netherlands are among countries hit hard by climate change, therefore, the application of suitable technologies in climate change response is significant to both countries, he said.

Since the 6th meeting of the Vietnam-Netherlands Inter-Government Committee on Climate Change Adaptation and Water Management in the Netherlands in 2017, the Vietnamese Government has always made efforts and stood ready to join hands with the international community in realising international commitments to cope with climate change.

However, Vietnam has still faced great challenges caused by climate change, saltwater intrusion, erosion and landslides, along with difficulties in water management and use, which has affected its sustainable socio-economic development, he added.

Dung called on the Netherlands to help Vietnam build an effective inter-sectoral and inter-regional coordination mechanism, and devise master plans on water resources and environmental protection.

He reiterated the Vietnamese Government’s commitments to implementing the strategic partnership, and instructing ministries and agencies to join efforts to further promote cooperation between the two countries.

Vietnamese Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Tran Hong Ha stressed that the Netherlands is an important partner of Vietnam in dealing with challenges related to water management and climate change adaptation, which, he described as a cooperation opportunity between the two countries.

Ha suggested the Netherlands cooperate and participate in raising funds for the Mekong Delta, which is vulnerable to climate change, controlling landslides and erosion in the region, drafting a strategy on flood prevention, and implementing agricultural transformation programmes, for sustainable development in the region.

For his part, Dutch Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management Cora van Nieuwenhuizen said the Dutch Government highly evaluated Vietnam’s due attention to issues regarding water management and climate change.

Dutch investors and businesses want to share their knowledge and experience with Vietnam in this field, she said, noting that climate change mitigation and adaptation should be increased in agendas of the two countries.

Nieuwenhuizen will hold talks with Vietnamese Ministers of Natural Resources and Environment; Planning and Investment; and Transport, and a Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade, focusing on enhancing cooperation in climate change adaptation and mitigation in Vietnam.

The minister proposed helping Vietnam review the implementation of relevant policies and devise new ones.

She spoke of opportunities to improve Vietnam’s logistics, mentioning the development of inland waterway transport in the Mekong Delta and modernisation of seaports and airports.

While in Vietnam, the Dutch minister is scheduled to visit Hoi An ancient city in the central province of Quang Nam on April 10, where a Vietnam-Netherlands joint venture has implemented a plan on coastal erosion prevention.

On April 11, she will mainly work on water management in Ho Chi Minh City and the Mekong Delta, where local people are grappling with problems caused by drought, flooding and water pollution.

Nieuwenhuizen will share her professional knowledge about how to mobilise financial resources for water management initiatives to prevent flooding, especially capital from the private sector and the Government’s incentives for investors.

She will also bring up the public-private partnership (PPP) in flood prevention and solutions to landslides during her working sessions with representatives of the HCM City People’s Committee, gearing towards a memorandum of understanding between Vietnam and the Netherlands in this field.-VNA