New plants are grown in a forest in the southern province of Dong Nai (Photo: VNA) Hanoi (VNA) – A meeting was held in Hanoi onJune 26 to review the project on support for preparing the readiness to carryout the international framework “Reducing Emissions from Deforestation andForest Degradation” (REDD+) in Vietnam Phase 2 (FCPF-2).
The programme, from November 2016 toJune 30, 2020, has been implemented in Hanoi and the six northern centralprovinces of Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri, and ThuaThien-Hue, at a total cost of 5.696 million USD, including 5 million USD ofnon-refundable ODA capital from the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF).
The FCPF-2 project aimsto assist relevant agencies at the central level and in the six northerncentral provinces to improve their institutional and technical capacity toprepare for the REDD+ implementation in Vietnam.
It also supports the building of the emissionreduction and transfer of the rights to emission reduction programme in thenorthern central region (ERPD) for 2018-2025, helping to carry out the nationalREDD+ action programme and the country’s Nationally Determined Contributionunder the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change.
Pham Van Dien, Deputy GeneralDirector of the Vietnam Administration of Forestry under the Ministry ofAgriculture and Rural Development (MARD), said the ERPD programme for 2018-2025is the first REDD+ programme in Vietnam to have been implemented across aregion according to the results-based payment approach.
Vietnam has mobilised resources byitself for implementing the programme’s activities with the aim of reducingabout 25 million tonnes of CO2, of which the FCPF pledged to purchase 10.3million tonnes of CO2 at 5 USD per tonne via the Emission Reductions Payment Agreement (ERPA),equivalent to 51.5 million USD in total.
Results used for assessment are thosebetween February 1, 2018 and December 31, 2024. The country will receivepayments after the results are verified by an independent party.
Dien noted that the MARD will report on outcomes of the ERPA negotiationto the Prime Minister to seek approval. Once getting the green light, theministry and the World Bank will sign this deal, expected in August this year.
Thanks to efforts by authorities and people in the six northern centralprovinces, the successful implementation of the ERPD programme will be aprerequisite for expanding the REDD+ to many other localities with forest inVietnam and attracting new financial partners.
MARD Deputy Minister Ha Cong Tuansaid REDD+ is a new initiative, and although the country has implemented theproject well, it still needs more efforts to move to a new phase – the phase ofresults-based payments, towards a full carbon credit market.
REDD+ is an international initiative aimedat providing financial and technical assistance for developing countries tohelp reduce greenhouse gas emissions and mitigate climate change impact viaefforts against deforestation and forest degradation.
Vietnam has participated in REDD+ since 2008, and more than 45 related projects have been implemented in thecountry so far./.
VNA
