Việt Nam, UNDP discuss boosting circular agriculture practices

HÀ NỘI — The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Việt Nam co-chaired a policy dialogue conference in Hà Nội on Monday to discuss enhancing international cooperation and multi-sectoral coordination in circular economy in agriculture.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phùng Đức Tiến highlighted Việt Nam’s commitment to a circular economy, pointing to existing policies and directives, including Article 142 of the 2020 Law on Environmental Protection.

The agricultural sector has promoted the application and implementation of circular agriculture, explicitly addressed in the 2021-30 strategy for sustainable agriculture and rural development (with a vision to 2050), and a scheme promoting the application and transfer of sci-tech for a circular agricultural economy by 2030, he said.

Ramla Khalidi, UNDP Resident Representative in Việt Nam, commended the country’s efforts to fulfil 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.

She 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.

UNDP, she reaffirmed, remains committed to supporting the Vietnamese Government in this journey.

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