Climate change was now one of the most important development priorities for the World Bank in Viet Nam, the Bank’s Environment Sector Co-ordinator Douglas J Graham said.

Workers plant trees along the coast in central Thanh Hoa Province’s Hoang Hoa District. More than 256,000 trees have been planted as part of environmental programmes in the region during the past year.

She also announced the World Bank would continue to increase its support for research and measures to cope with socially disruptive effects of climate change in Viet Nam.

Natural disaster risk mitigation would be a priority in the Mekong Delta region, the most vulnerable region and home to a fifth of the country’s population.

Hundreds of millions of dollars would be channelled into energy, transport and rural industry emission reduction programmes by the bank.

The bank would also act as the co-ordinator between central governments, donors and NGOs in the effort to address climate change, said Graham.

Also present at the launch were representatives from the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and CARE NGO (Christian Action Research and Education).

While a number of development agencies were providing climate change related assistance to Viet Nam, there had been no comprehensive study undertaken about the potential impacts of climate change on the Mekong region.

The effectiveness with which the Government handled the global economic crisis was one reason behind the bank’s decision to boost development co-operation with Viet Nam, according to James Adam, the bank’s Vice President for East Asia and the Pacific.

To deal with the threat posed from climate change, the Government adopted the National Strategy for Natural Disaster Prevention and Mitigation to 2020 and National Target Programme to Respond to Climate Change in 2007.

The plans include educating 10 per cent of the population and 65 per cent of civil servants about the effects of climate change by 2010. Targets of 80 and 100 per cent have been set for 2015, respectively.

VietNamNet/Viet Nam News