July 10, 2024

Vietnam's agriculture ministry, UNDP held conference on circular economy in agriculture in Hanoi

Vietnam's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in the country co-chaired a policy dialogue conference in Hanoi on July 8 to discuss enhancing international cooperation and multi-sectoral coordination in circular economy in agriculture.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phung Duc Tien highlighted Vietnam's commitment to a circular economy, pointing to existing policies and directives, including Article 142 of the 2020 Law on Environmental Protection.

The country's agricultural sector has promoted the application and implementation of circular agriculture, explicitly addressed in a 2021-2030 strategy for sustainable agriculture and rural development, and a scheme promoting the application and transfer of sci-tech for a circular agricultural economy by 2030, according to Tien.

Ramla Khalidi, UNDP Resident Representative in Vietnam, commended the country's efforts to fulfill its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) - commitments made under the Paris Agreement. She acknowledged the multifaceted benefits of circular agriculture – addressing climate change goals, enhancing economic competitiveness, and protecting human health and ecosystems.

Khalidi called for stronger collaboration to build and perform circular economy policies. This includes ensuring equitable investment allocation, fostering knowledge sharing and cooperation, and leveraging the power of agricultural value chains and sci-tech for communication campaigns to raise awareness. She affirmed that UNDP remains committed to supporting the Vietnamese government in this journey.

During the conferemce, representatives from international and non-governmental organisations, the private sector, ministries and agencies shared insights on international cooperation mechanisms, interdisciplinary coordination to promote circular agriculture practices, and successful case studies.

Participants also underlined public-private partnerships in driving the success of circular agriculture, with the private sector applying sci-tech to advance relevant initiatives.

- VNA