PM issues directive on accelerating national green growth strategy

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh on December 9 issued a directive to push ahead with the implementation of the national green growth strategy for 2021 - 2030 with a vision to 2050, a bold step to deliver on the carbon neutraility target.

Vietnam is developing renewable energy to deliver on its carbon neutrality target by 2050. (Photo: VNA)

The Government leader highlighted in the directive that despite multidimensional challenges, Vietnam has made great strides in green growth, making positive contributions to the economic growth over the recent past. However, the process has not yet fully emerged as an economic growth driver due to several liminatations, including the fragmented policy framework, incomplete green financial instruments, shortages of incentives for breakthrough investments, and poor awareness of green growth significance.

The directive provides a detailed roadmap for Government agencies, local administrations, and key sectors to integrate green growth targets and tasks into their development strategies, plans and legal documents.

Ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies and Government agencies, and chairperson of the People’s Committees of provinces and centrally-run cities need to step up communications work, embed green growth principles into national consciousness, while improving the efficiency of information sharing between ministries, sectors and localities during the implementation of the strategy.

PM Chinh ordered the Ministry of Planning and Investment to pen a roadmap to carry out green growth initiatives that are linked to long-term socio-econmic development and the ultimate goal of carbon neutrality. It will be responsible for institutionalising and overseeing the adaptation and and application of new economic policies, models and tools to restructure the economy towards green and sustainable fashion, ensuring equality and competitive edge as well as promoting the private sector’s pivotal role in the green transition.

The ministry should mobilise every resource for green growth, revise legal documents related to public investment with priority given to green funding, and create preferential investment mechanisms that encourage green growth, the directive stated.

The Ministry of Finance was asked to ramp up efforts to complete the project on the establishment and development of a carbon market in Vietnam while the State Bank of Vietnam must continue reviewing and perfecting the regulations on banking and credit in accordance with green growth targets.

In the meantime, the Ministry of Industry and Trade must upgrade the industrial sectors based on innovation and science - technology, attract investments to such green industries as renewable energy, hydrogen, electric vehicle production, and battery charging infrastructure, as well as study and bring into full play measures for adapting to the European Commission’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM).

Specific directions targeting comprehensive reforms in critical areas include building green and smart urban areas with climate-adaptive approach; restructuring the agricultural sector by encouraging organic, circular, high-tech and low-emission farming; strengthening international cooperation in green economy, bolstering economic diplomacy, technological diplomacy, and climate diplomacy; enhancing the integration of green growth into education; as well as promoting high-quality human resources for green growth-related industries.

Additionally, PM Chinh called on the business community, associations, research institutes and higher education institutions to join hands with ministries and sectors to carry out the green growth strategy./.

VNA