Nationally appropriate mitigation actions (NAMA)

Project description

Title: Creation of an overarching framework for nationally appropriate mitigation actions (NAMAs) and measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) in Viet Nam
Commissioned by: German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU)
Country: Viet Nam
Lead executing agency: Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE)
Overall term: 2014 to 2018

Context

Viet Nam is one of the fastest growing economies of South East Asia. Unfortunately, its pursuit of economic growth is closely linked to rising greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which are forecast to triple in the country by 2030 compared to 2010. At the same time, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has listed Viet Nam; with its exceptionally long coastline, as one of the countries most severely affected by worldwide climate change. Climate change is therefore a crucial issue for the country.

Against this background, the Government of Viet Nam is committed to implementing ambitious mitigation actions and policies in the context of its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC). Towards this end, it is pursuing its own Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions (NAMAs), in line with the country's development priorities and 2030 Agenda as stated in the National Action Plan on the Sustainable Development Goals. These actions will make an active contribution to Viet Nam’s transition to a sustainable, low-carbon economy, and they can provide a number of co-benefits. These include for example, improvements in public health thanks to a reduction in traffic pollution and increasing rural electrification due to the growth of renewable energy use. The NAMAs should meet international standards for measurement, reporting and verification (MRV).

The government has committed itself to launching several NAMAs in specific sectors until 2020 with the support of development partners. It is also planning to introduce a national MRV system to track the emission reductions of the new measures and identify their impacts. 

Objectives

The project is supporting Viet Nam in elaborating an ambitious climate policy and in achieving its goals in terms of contributing to global mitigation efforts. This has been achieved through strengthening MONREs` capacities in the coordination and development of NAMAs and in the implementation of the Paris Agreement.

Approach

The project supports Viet Nam’s efforts to achieve its ambitious climate goals with activities in six main areas:

  1. Support for MONRE to establish an institutional set-up to coordinate the development and implementation of NAMAs across sector ministries: MONRE´s Department of Climate Change was assigned as the national focal point for NAMAs in Viet Nam. Several procedural and structural recommendations on NAMA coordination and development have been elaborated in the course of the project.
  2. Identifying and developing two bankable NAMAs that are attractive to private investors, and producing general guidelines on NAMA development and implementation: Two bankable NAMAs have been developed: One focuses on establishing a low-carbon bus system for major cities in Viet Nam and has been registered under the UNFCCC NAMA database for seeking funding (the so called “Low Carbon Bus NAMA”). The other NAMA targets small and medium-sized enterprises in the garment sector for a combined application of energy efficiency measures and rooftop solar PV (the so called “Textile NAMA”). 
  3. Support for MONRE to establish a MRV Portal which serves as a systematic tool for knowledge management and data sharing among agencies of MONRE and other line ministries: A concept note for the MRV Portal was developed and a number of MRV trainings were organised. A “NDC portal” was developed in the course of the project as a basis for the national MRV system that the Vietnamese government plans to establish from 2020 onwards.
  4. Strengthening the negotiating capacities of the Vietnamese delegation to international climate change negotiations: Several trainings for members of the Vietnamese delegation were conducted. Technical background papers for the delegation were prepared in advance of the UNFCCC climate change talks as well.  
  5. Support for Viet Nam´s NDC review and update process, and implementation of the Paris Agreement: The project advised both the development of Viet Nam´s intended NDC in 2015 and the process to update the NDC in 2017/2018. Furthermore, it supported MONRE in its task to coordinate relevant stakeholders on Viet Nam´s roadmap to implement the Paris Agreement, the so called “Plan for Implementation of the Paris Agreement” (PIPA). 
  6. Support for knowledge management and networking: As the IKI interface in Viet Nam, the project has conducted and attended several bilateral, regional and international network meetings. Moreover, it has contributed to fostering and exchanging knowledge among IKI implementers in Viet Nam.

The project has further conducted a number of studies, and has organised workshops, training events, a study tour and additional capacity development measures. The beneficiaries include the Viet Nam Institute of Meteorology, Hydrology and Climate Change (IMHEN), the Department of Climate Change (DCC) and the International Cooperation Department (ICD) of MONRE. Moreover, numerous state agencies, line ministries, development partners, investors, cooperation partners, provinces and sectors are benefiting indirectly from the measures of the project.