(VEN) – Speaking at a conference on diversifying donors for the Support Program to Respond to Climate Change (SPRCC) recently held by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment’s National Climate Change Committee in Hanoi, international donors appreciated Vietnam’s role in the implementation of policies in the SPRCC. Donors said they are willing to provide technical and financial assistance for Vietnam to further realize SPRCC.
The SPRCC was kicked off in 2009 with two sponsors – the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the French Development Agency (AFD). The World Bank (WB), Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) and K.Eximbank have become program donors along with JICA and AFD. The program attracted US$248 million in 2012 alone and is expected to attract US$278-328 million in 2013.
Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Tran Hong Ha said, in 2012, the Prime Minister approved SPRCC’s 2013 capital allocation plan for 11 priority projects with a total cost of VND350 billion (accounting for 14 percent of the 11 projects’ total capital demand and 2.06 percent of the total capital approved for the 62 priority projects under SPRCC).
Provinces that are to have access to the program’s assistance in 2013 include Hau Giang that will receive VND30 billion, An Giang (VND20 billion), Kien Giang (VND30 billion), Lao Cai (VND40 billion), Lai Chau (VND40 billion), and Gia Lai (VND25 billion), among others. As of June 30, 2013, VND86.6 billion (21.9 percent of the total earmarked capital) had already been invested in the 11 projects. The remaining 78.1 percent of the earmarked capital is expected to be invested from now to the end of December 2013.
As of the end of September 2013, ministries and sectors involved in SPRCC built 24 policy actions according to the set schedule. On September 19, 2013, the Prime Minister approved the framework policy matrix for 2013 under this program. Ministries and sectors are working with donors including WB, AFD, JICA, K.EXIMBANK, AusAID, the US Agency for International Development (USAid) and German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ) to complete a framework policy matrix for the 2014-2015 period.
Based on the positive results achieved in 2012 and the first months of this year, in 2014 the National Climate Change Committee will continue to implement the national strategy for green growth towards developing a green, low-carbon economy, improve natural disaster forecasting and warning capability, give priority to hydrometeorology modernization projects in terms of domestic and foreign resource deployment, and gradually modernize surveillance and natural disaster forecasting and warning systems through cooperation with the WB, Japan, Italy and Finland.
Speaking at a conference on diversifying donors for SPRCC, international donors appreciated Vietnamese government and Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment’s role in the implementation of policies in the SPRCC. However, donors stressed that Vietnam should have specific guidelines for localities, promote closer cooperation between related authorities and sectors, more effectively use resources, build new ideas, improve infrastructure and adopt strategic investment orientations.
Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai expressed his pleasure at the commitment of donors to Vietnam and on behalf of the Vietnamese government he said that Vietnam will use funding for this program more effectively./.
By Phuong Tam
Đăng ký: VietNam News