Vietnam has made progress in aquatic environment management in river basins thanks to a project funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

Illustrative image

A coordination mechanism for aquatic environment protection in the basin of Dong Nai River, along with a new river basin commission have been established, heard a meeting of the steering board for the “Strengthening capacity of water environment management in river basin” project on May 10.

Ichiro Adachi, chief advisor of the JICA expert team, stressed the significance of the project in terms of sustainable management, saying a coordination mechanism is one of the most important factors in the management of the aquatic environments in river basins.

At the working session, JICA experts suggested extending the duration of the project, previously scheduled to run from 2016-2018, to May 2019 to effectively transfer its outcomes.

Furthermore, the drafting of legal documents and the establishment of river basin organisations are overdue. Moreover, the Vietnam Environment Administration is restructuring its organisation, leading to a change of agency in charge of managing river basins, they said.

The project aims to improve central and local government's capacity in aquatic environment protection in the provinces of Bac Ninh, Bac Giang, and Thai Nguyen in the Cau river basin and in Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong, Dong Nai, and Ba Ria-Vung Tau provinces in the Dong Nai river basin.

The project is expected to calculate the pollution load capacity in the area which will be used as a base for localities to coordinate aquatic environment management and development activities.

According to Vo Tuan Nhan, Deputy Minister of the Vietnamese Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Vietnam’s rivers, especially those flowing through cities, industrial parks, and trade villages, are seriously contaminated.

To address the problem, Vietnam has promulgated many policies, mechanisms and legal documents in the field, and sought international assistance, of which the JICA project is one example, Nhan said.

VNF/VNA