Agriculture at the heart of global climate action

During the International Support Group (ISG) Plenary Meeting on January 9, themed "Accelerating Food Systems Transformation Toward Green, Low-Emission, and Sustainable Development: Cooperation and Innovation", Le Ngoc Tuan, Deputy Director of the Department of Climate Change under the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, shared pivotal outcomes from the 30th UN Climate Change Conference (COP30).

Substantive action and national accountability

Marking a decade since the adoption of the Paris Agreement, the COP30 summit held in November 2025 in Belém, Brazil, defined the global climate action roadmap for the period beyond 2030. Participating parties demanded that greenhouse gas reduction and climate adaptation efforts move beyond rhetoric to deliver substantive, measurable results tied to national accountability. The choice of a host city near the Amazon was deeply symbolic, effectively placing forest conservation and sustainable agriculture at the absolute forefront of the global agenda.

Mr. Tuan noted that the primary political highlight of COP30 was the consensus reached on the "Mutirão" Decision. Drawing from the host nation's culture, "Mutirão" signifies the mobilization of community strength for the collective good. This decision reaffirms that international cooperation must now accelerate and scale climate action to meet the Paris Agreement targets of keeping global temperature increases well below 2°C while striving to limit the rise to 1.5°C.

In the agricultural sector, the Mutirão Decision underscores the critical role of conserving, protecting, and restoring nature and ecosystems as a fundamental condition for meeting global temperature goals. Parties are now urged to intensify efforts to halt and reverse deforestation, land degradation, and the decline of both terrestrial and marine ecosystems. Furthermore, the agreement ensures that social and environmental safeguards are strictly and effectively implemented. Under the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA), COP30 emphasized that nations must ensure a significant percentage of agricultural and food production areas utilize climate-smart technologies and best adaptation practices. This involves strengthening knowledge transfer mechanisms and agricultural extension systems to help farmers adopt these solutions.

Global agricultural and forestry initiatives

While COP30 did not provide a detailed operational roadmap for global food systems, the conference saw the launch of several major initiatives. These include the Sustainable Agriculture Investment for Net-Zero and Land Degradation (RAIZ) initiative aimed at restoring degraded lands, and the Action on Regenerative Landscapes (AARL) program which supports global conservation. Additionally, the Belém Declaration on Fertilizers established a commitment to enhance fertilizer efficiency, reduce emissions from production, and restore soil health. Other technological advancements introduced include initiatives for applying Artificial Intelligence and digital tools to climate-smart agriculture.

Vietnam took a proactive stance at COP30 by joining the Alliance of Champions for Food Systems Transformation (ACF). This membership opens significant doors for enhanced cooperation in sustainable agriculture, attracting international finance and technology transfer while affirming Vietnam's role in global initiatives. The Vietnamese delegation also proposed content for the Food and Agriculture for Sustainable Transformation (FAST) partnership, focusing on farmer-centric climate finance, pilot blended finance for sustainable rice production, and results-based payments for soil restoration.

In the forestry sector, COP30 was a landmark event. The Tropical Forest Forever Fund (TFFF) was launched with an initial commitment of over USD 6.6 billion from developed nations to provide direct financing for the conservation and restoration of tropical forests. Additionally, the J REDD+ Initiative seeks to increase private-sector financing for forest protection. Other measures approved by the Forest and Climate Leaders’ Partnership (FCLP) include the establishment of a Global Wildfire Management Center and a plan to promote the use of legal, sustainable timber in construction.

Opportunities for high-value, low-emission transformation

At COP30, agriculture was framed not only as a sector vulnerable to climate change but as a vital part of the solution. New climate finance mechanisms and carbon credits demonstrate a global commitment to supporting high-resilience, low-emission agriculture. This paradigm shift requires a deep transformation of the agricultural sector but also offers access to resources, technology, and new markets for proactive nations.

Based on these outcomes, the Department of Climate Change suggests that Vietnam must actively communicate COP30 results to businesses and cooperatives while strengthening the agricultural sector's contribution to National Determined Contributions (NDC). Regarding science and technology, the focus should be on low-emission cultivation techniques, standardized Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) protocols, and the creation of a national greenhouse gas database for crops.

Capacity building remains essential, requiring training programs for farmers and enterprises on low-emission techniques and carbon credit markets. In the forestry sector, Vietnam will carefully evaluate the conditions for joining the Tropical Forest Forever Fund (TFFF) to assess national obligations against potential benefits. Finally, Mr. Tuan emphasized the need for digital technology and remote sensing in forest management, accompanied by transparent benefit-sharing mechanisms to ensure local and Indigenous communities are fair participants in REDD+ programs.