Vietnam is in an excellent position to promote green growth

P4G Summit (Hanoi, April 15-17, 2025), themed "Sustainable and people-centered green transition", is the largest multilateral high-level event on green growth hosted by Vietnam in the 2021-2026 period. Vietnam Agriculture and Nature Newspaper (VAN) will update regularly Vietnam's strong commitments, proactive role and international responsibility at the P4G Summit.

On April 16, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Environment Le Cong Thanh welcomed and held a working session with Mr. Sang Hyup Kim, Director-General of the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI). The meeting took place on the occasion of the GGGI delegation's participation in the P4G Summit in Hanoi.

Welcoming Mr. Sang Hyup Kim to Vietnam for the P4G Summit, Deputy Minister Le Cong Thanh stated that this is an important forum to promote dialogue and action on green growth as well as sustainable development goals.

“The P4G Summit is held at a very critical time, and it will guide us in addressing current and future trade conflicts", the Deputy Minister emphasized.

“We are heading in the same direction"

Deputy Minister Le Cong Thanh emphasized that Vietnam has firmly set green growth, low-carbon development, and the target of achieving Net Zero by 2050 as key strategic directions, which are reflected across all policies and actions for national development. As the main agency responsible for agriculture, natural resources, environment, and climate change, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (MAE) plays an important role in realizing these goals for Vietnam.

The leader of the MAE highly appreciates the cooperation between the agriculture and environment sectors and GGGI. This includes the implementation of the "Biochar towards climate-smart circular agriculture in Vietnam" project, which has supported Vietnamese experts and private partners in visiting and learning from climate-smart agriculture models in South Korea. Additionally, the project has helped assess the development potential and explore future cooperation in biochar production and use. Other initiatives include the implementation of the Sustainable Urban Cooling Project in Can Tho City and Quang Nam Province.

"With a journey spanning 10 years of GGGI's presence in Vietnam through meaningful projects in agriculture and the circular economy, it is clear that we are heading in the same direction," Deputy Minister Le Cong Thanh affirmed.

Sharing the same view as Deputy Minister Le Cong Thanh, Director-General Sang Hyup Kim stated that the climate crisis is a present reality, and countries cannot deny the impacts of climate change. As a result, addressing carbon emission reduction is something that cannot be overlooked.

“I believe that the green transition and green growth will continue. This transformation is not limited to the energy sector but also spans agriculture, food, and water sectors. These areas play a strategic role in fostering a green connection. Therefore, Vietnam is in an excellent position to lead and promote green growth", stated Mr. Sang Hyup Kim.

Promoting cooperation for green agriculture development and carbon market expansion

Discussing the collaboration with GGGI, Deputy Minister Le Cong Thanh highlighted that the Vietnamese government is actively working on the Sustainable Development Project for 1 million hectares of high-quality, low-emission rice cultivation in connection with green growth in the Mekong Delta region, aiming for completion by 2030. This project is in line with the development goals of the Agriculture and Environment sectors and supports all stakeholders involved in the rice production value chain.

The Deputy Minister suggested that GGGI consider supporting localities and agencies of the Ministry to promote the success of the emission reduction technology project; improve the Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) method according to international standards and the carbon market; enhance MRV capacity, emission measurement equipment, and emission reduction tools; set technical standards and labels for low-emission green rice; and support model farming practices for high-quality, low-emission rice to quickly scale up the project, aiming to reach 1 million hectares by 2030.

In addition, in line with Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, Vietnam is currently developing legal documents regarding the domestic carbon market. Starting this year, Vietnam will allocate carbon quotas and pilot the operation of the domestic carbon market. Mr. Thanh requested that GGGI collaborate with the Department of Climate Change (MAE) to assess the support needs and provide expert assistance to strengthen capacity and address issues related to the carbon market.

Agreeing with the two proposals, CEO Sang Hyup Kim highlighted that agri-food sectors will become increasingly crucial in the coming years. Given this, GGGI is fully committed to supporting Vietnam in building a sustainable agricultural industry and promoting the development of a circular economy.

Additionally, GGGI has recently launched a Carbon Trading Fund, designed to facilitate carbon credit transactions between countries and investors. “We strongly believe that this initiative will open up significant opportunities to attract green investments to Vietnam. Furthermore, we are committed to ensuring the integrity and credibility of the process, helping Vietnam to develop its carbon market in a swift and effective manner", Mr. Sang Hyup Kim said.

Looking ahead to the promising future of collaboration between the MAEand GGGI, Sang Hyup Kim shared an optimistic perspective: “This is only the first chapter of the book, and we may not yet know what the final pages will hold. However, with the successful initial cases, we are confident that the journey ahead will proceed smoothly and with great success".