Vietnam and the Association of the Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have pledged to enhance cooperation in preventing and minimizing environmental pollution and biodiversity decline, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE). Deputy Minister of Natural Resources and Environment Bui Cach Tuyen made the statement at the 17th meeting of the ASEAN Working Group on Multilateral Environmental Agreements’ (AWGMEA) in Hanoi on July 4. Mr. Tuyen admitted that although Vietnam has recorded a number of remarkable achievements in socio-economic development, the country still faces challenges in environmental pollution and declining biodiversity. Vietnam adopted the 2005 environmental protection law and the 2008 biodiversity law, providing an essential legal framework for environmental protection amid rising degradation, he added. The National Target Program on Pollution Mitigation and Environmental Improvement and the National Strategy on Environmental Protection by 2020 with a vision to 2030 are important tools for promoting environmental protection. Despite obtaining significant results in the environmental protection, the AWGMEA has not yet proposed specific programs in response to agreements on international multilateral environment. The four-day meeting will review its member nations’ progress and consider appropriate future initiatives along with discussions on a number of international conventions. Waste and wastewater from industrial production and local households are often untreated in Vietnam due to lax control and legal loopholes in handling environmental violations and lenient fines on violators. Pollution remains an obstacle for the country’s socioeconomic development. Vietnam loses an estimated 5.5% of its gross domestic product (GDP) each year to rapidly rising environmental pollution, said the MoNRE. (Cong An Nhan Dan – People’s Police July 5 p1, monre.gov.vn July 4, vov.vn July 4)
