The Department of Climate Change (DCC) and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Viet Nam held a "Consultation workshop on the final draft of the Technical Report on the climate change national adaptation plan (NAP)." Viet Nam will submit this report to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Secretariat in advance of COP 27 later this year.

At the workshop, representatives of the different ministries, including Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Ministry of health, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ministry of Industry and Trade, State Bank of Viet Nam, Ministry of National Defense, local authorities of Northern provinces contributed ideas based on the actual implementation situation and difficulties encountered in their sectors in charge.

According to Prof. Dr. Tran Thuc, Vice Chairman of the Advisory Council of the National Committee on Climate Change, the NAP is a medium- and long-term plan to concretize Viet Nam's commitments to climate change adaptation with international partners. At the request of the UNFCCC, Vietnam develops the NAP Technical Report, informing the international community about Vietnam's climate change situation, its impacts, losses, and damages, as well as the scope of natural disasters and climate risks. The report also details Viet Nam's climate change response efforts, accomplishments, and adaptation gaps requiring both national and international support.

Mr. Patrick Haverman, UNDP Deputy Representative in Viet Nam, said, "The NAP technical report describes climate impacts on different sectors and localities in Viet Nam, actual situation of adaptation resources, gaps in the implementation, solutions and M&E measures, with special attention to women, disadvantaged and vulnerable groups, ethnic minorities, elder people and youth."

"The report also contributes to reviewing and updating the NAP after the first two years of implementation following the Prime Minister's Decision 1055/QD-Ttg and is a crucial component of the updated NDC 2022, promoting climate priorities effectively at all levels and sectors," stated Mr. Nguyen Tuan Quang, Deputy General Director of the Department of Climate Change.

Most participants agreed with the content of the draft report. They acknowledged the difficulty in distinguishing between the loss and damage caused by climate change and the damage inherent to natural disasters. The next step is determining adaptation resources, and how to integrate them into development strategies and master plans effectively.

DCC and UNDP also held a consultation workshop on Guidelines for implementing the national climate change monitoring and evaluation system on the same day.

According to Mr. Patrick Haverman, the UNDP's Deputy Representative in Viet Nam, this is an essential tool for monitoring the implementation of adaptation actions regularly, highlighting challenges and best practices to take corrective action and suitable adjustment. The system also displays the efforts of stakeholders, ranging from local provinces to ministries to the public and private sectors, in implementing tasks and priorities for adaptive action through 2030.

From 25 to 26 July, the DCC and UNDP will organize the last write-shop after series of technical meetings and consultations to finalize the NAP report. The write-shop will be participated by representatives of related ministries including Ministry of Transport, Ministry of Planning and Investment, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and UNDP’s experts.