Draft plan of GHG emissions reduction in agriculture and rural development

On 28 June 2022 in Hanoi, the Department of Science, Technology and the Environment (DoSTE) - MARD and GIZ, within the framework of the Project “Support to Vietnam for the Implementation of the Paris Agreement” (VN-SIPA), co-organised a consultation workshop on the draft plan for GHG emissions reduction (including a plan for methane emissions reduction) in the agriculture and rural development sector. This plan needs to be submitted to MONRE by 31 January 2023, according to Decree No. 06/2022/ND-CP on regulating the mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions and the protection of the ozone layer. Around 60 participants (both online and on-site), including representatives of line ministries, departments, development partners and NGOs, initiated a robust discussion on mitigation targets and measures for the sector for the period 2023-2030, with a vision to 2050.

In order to achieve a net-zero target by 2050, a 30% reduction of national methane emissions by 2030, and other commitments made by Viet Nam at the 2015 Paris Agreement, the draft plan has proposed a target to cut of 23.59% of the total greenhouse gas emissions by 2025 and by up to 43.21% by 2030 in the agriculture sector compared to the BAU scenario. “With this draft plan MARD appears well prepared and aligning with Vietnam’s target of Net-Zero by 2050 and the Global Methane Pledge.” – said Mr. Daniel Herrmann, Chief Technical Advisor of VN-SIPA.

The workshop focused on the challenges, opportunities and feasibility of the implementation plan for GHG and methane reduction across the three sub-sectors of crop production, livestock, and LULUCF. Representatives from MARD, MONRE, NGOs and national experts provided information on the detailed mitigation roadmap including specific objectives, mitigation measures, MRV and M&E systems for each sector and received recommendations from the participants.

Valuable recommendations from representatives of different organizations were given during the discussion sessions for each sector group. The main concern of the current draft plan remains the feasibility of the targets and implementation plans for all three sub-sectors. Many delegates emphasized the alignment of policy frameworks with the current ambitious net-zero commitment and efficient fund mobilization for implementing agencies to ensure the success of mitigation measures.

Ms. Nguyen Giang Thu, Deputy Director General of the Department of Science, Technology and Environment, concluded that the workshop was a success and applauded the valuable opinions “that will greatly contribute to the development of the second draft plan”. She hoped that the second consultation round will be just as successful with robust comments from the delegates.

The VN-SIPA project aims to support the establishment of legal frameworks for implementing the national climate protection contribution (NDC) and the Paris Agreement. It also aims to promote inter-ministerial cooperation on climate protection affairs, the implementation of reduction measures (NAMA), and to apply ecosystem-based and climate-smart adaptation measures.