Networking Workshop for the IKI Community in Vietnam

–> Download the IKI Workshop Documentation

On 31 October, the first IKI Vietnam networking workshop took place in Hanoi. Around 60 representatives from IKI projects, their Vietnamese partners, the German Ministry for the Environment (BMU), and the IKI Secretariat administered by ZUG GmbH came together for the workshop. The aims of the workshop were to identify potential synergies between projects and to encourage the exchange of success factors and challenges in project implementation, in particular in the context of the national NDC process. Parallel to this, the participants shared experience gained during project implementation.

In the evening before the workshop, an official reception was held for the “IKI Community” in Vietnam and selected guests. On this occasion, implementing organisations presented their projects, and IKI´s success in Vietnam was celebrated with the German Ambassador and the Vice Minister of MONRE. In welcoming remarks, Dr. Guido Hildner, the German Ambassador, emphasized that IKI’s strong commitment in Vietnam since 2008 had made a contribution towards forging deeper relations between Germany and Vietnam. He cited as an example IKI’s support regarding Vietnam’s ratification of the Paris agreement and the concept of ecosystem-based adaptation, which has been applied in many regions of Vietnam thanks to IKI and now forms part of national policy. The Deputy Minister of MONRE, Le Cong Thanh, expressed his thanks for the successful cooperation with Germany and his hope that cooperation between the two countries on climate protection and conserving biodiversity would be strengthened in the future.

Dr. Guido Hildner said:

Since its establishment, the International Climate Initiative has launched 16 bilateral and 63 global or regional projects that have been active in addressing various climate issues in Vietnam. These projects have supported and catalyzed mitigation and adaptation efforts all over the country, and have strengthened Germany´s relationship with Vietnam. Together, we have achieved mobilisation of a vast array of different actors including academia, civil society, the private sector, and city authorities to work together to tackle climate change and halt the loss of biodiversity.”

Le Cong Thanh, Deputy Minister of MONRE, said:

Several ministries in Vietnam continue to receive support from IKI for the development and implementation of sectorial mitigation and adaptation activities. These activities include protecting ecosystems, the sustainable management of forests, and promoting renewable energies and clean transport. This support contributes to MONRE´s commitments and achievements in the context of international agreements, such as the Paris Agreement, the Convention on Biological Diversity, and the international framework for REDD+. […] For the future, I hope that MONRE, BMU, GIZ, and all implementing partners will continue to promote and enhance cooperation in the field of climate change and biodiversity conservation, […].”

Vietnam is one of IKI’s priority countries and currently has 31 bilateral, regional, and global projects that are being delivered by more than 20 implementing organisations. The IKI has funded over 70 projects in Vietnam since it was established in 2008. An “IKI interface” was created in 2018 to coordinate the exchange and synergies between the different implementing organisations. This IKI Interface also organised the IKI reception and networking workshop. When the bilateral key project “Support for the implementation of the Paris agreement” (SIPA) began in October 2018, it took over the role of the IKI interface in Vietnam. The overarching goal of the SIPA project to support the Vietnamese Government during NDC implementation in line with the Paris Agreement means that there is a point of reference for all IKI projects.