Water level of Tri An lake falls down due to El Nino (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam is one ofthe first 63 countries to join the Global Cooling Pledge proposed by Presidentof the UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP28) Sultan Al Jaberwithin the framework of COP28 recently held in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates(UAE).
Underthe pledge, the global cooling sector must reduce greenhouse gas emissions byat least 68% by 2050 compared to 2022, helping to maintain the globalaverage temperature increase at the threshold of 1.5 degrees Celsius in linewith the objective of achieving net-zero global emissions by 2050.
Asone of the countries hardest hit by climate change, coupled with a significantincrease in the use of cooling devices in recent years, Vietnam has been awareof the importance of taking adaptive actions to address climate change andprotect the environment.
According to the Department of Climate Change under the Ministry of Natural Resources andEnvironment, sustainable cooling requirementshave been integrated into the tasks and solutions outlined in the NationalStrategy on Climate Change until 2050 and the updated Nationally DeterminedContributions (NDCs) for 2022.
Thedepartment worked with partners and signed Memoranda of Understanding on cooperationwith the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI)in order to enhance the country’s capacity of implementing the NDCs.
It built policies and programmes to step up the progress ofthe NDCs in two priority areas of climate change response and sustainablecooling in Vietnam’s urban areas.
To promote climate-friendly cooling solutions againstextreme heat in Vietnamese cities, the department in collaboration with the UNEPand the GGGI launched a programme on sustainable urban cooling in Vietnam's urban areas, withsupport from the Clean Cooling Collaborative. It is being piloted in the Mekong Delta city of Can Tho, Tam Ky city in the centralprovince of Quang Nam and Dong Hoi city in the central province of Quang Binh.
Additionally, the departmentand the UNEP have been working on a programme named "NDC Action Project –Facilitating the Implementation of Climate-Resilient and Low-Carbon Developmentaligned with National and Global Goals".
During the 2020-2025period, Vietnam aims to achieve a 35% reduction in the baseline consumption of hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), phasing it out until the complete end of HCFCimport by 2040./.
