Building sustainable agricultural value chains to reduce deforestation
Vietnam is promoting sustainable agricultural trade and production to reduce deforestation, heard an event under the umbrella of the fourth Global Conference of the Planet Network’s Sustainable Food Systems Programme held in Hanoi on April 25 by UNDP and the Vietnam Administration of Forestry (VNFOREST) under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Farmers harvest peppercorn in a Central Highlands province. (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam is promoting sustainable agricultural trade and productionto reduce deforestation, heard an event under the umbrella of the fourthGlobal Conference of the Planet Network’s Sustainable Food Systems Programmeheld in Hanoi on April 25 by UNDP and the Vietnam Administration of Forestry (VNFOREST) under the Ministry of Agricultureand Rural Development.
Tran Quang Bao, Deputy Director of VNFOREST, said agriculturalfarming is considered as one of the major land-using industries. The currentexpansion of land for agricultural development in the world is the main causeof deforestation and shrinking of forest land.
Therefore, agricultural production and trade should be directed towards sustainable development of value chains, which increase the quality and value of products and community's livelihood without the need to expand production areas, he said.
Rui Ludovino, First Counselor in charge of Climate Action, Environment, Employment and SocialPolicy at the Delegation of the European Union toVietnam updated participants on the latest regulations of the EU that ban the import of products related to deforestation. He said the new rules will take effect at the beginning of 2025 with a six-month delay for small and medium-sized enterprises, stressing that exporters and importers must be aware of the deadline to meet the EU market's requirements.
Ludovino said that Vietnam is implementing the Voluntary Partnership Agreement on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (VPA/FLEGT), which includes legal regulations on sustainable development of the wood industry. This is an advantage for Vietnam, and other sectors like rubber or coffee can learn from it.
He added that Vietnam does not face a high risk of deforestation thanks to its government's forest protection policies. However, the country should to strengthen supply chains to help its agricultural products to penetrate deeper into the EU market.
Patrick Haverman, Deputy Chief ResidentRepresentative of UNDP Vietnam, said that the organisation has been supportingVietnam in sustainable forest and landscape management through many programmesand projects over the past 20 years.
He affirmed that UNDP is ready to work with partner governments and private sector partnersto create a favourable environment for the supply chain of agriculturalproducts that does not cause deforestation for the benefit of the environmentand people, especially smallholder farmers and vulnerable communities.
For sustainable development without causing deforestation,the EU through UNDP has coordinated with the Ministry of Agriculture and RuralDevelopment and Dak Nong and Lam Dong provinces to implement a project on comprehensivesustainable landscape management through the approach of sustainable developmentwithout causing deforestation in the two provinces (iLandscape)./.
VNA
Related News
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), in collaboration with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and relevant agencies organised a workshop on agriculture adaptive to climate change in Asian deltas.
Many districts, communes in Hanoi have actively promoted the use of drones in agriculture production - the first step in boosting hi-tech farming and joining the global farm produce supply chain in the coming time for the spring 2023 crop.
Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan emphasised the important role by cooperatives in the agriculture-based economy at a seminar held by Radio The Voice of Vietnam (VOV) in Hanoi on April 6.
The Phuoc Thuan Border Guard Station and competent units in Ho Tram commune, Ho Chi Minh City, on June 4 rescued a rare sea turtle caught in a fishing net and safely released it back into the sea.
The elongated tortoise is one of the most beautiful and rare terrestrial tortoise species, listed in both the Vietnam Red Data Book and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. It typically inhabits tropical and subtropical forests and plays an important role in maintaining ecological balance. However, due to illegal trade and habitat loss, its wild population has been declining sharply.
The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)-funded technical cooperation project on drainage management for climate resilience in Can Tho aims to improve planning capacity for wastewater collection, enhance operations and management of existing treatment plants, and the city’s ability to run public awareness campaigns.
A series of environmental and marine-related events to held in the central province of Nghe An from June 4-6 will generate a broad social impact, helping transform awareness into action and commitments into concrete results, and contributing to Vietnam’s goals of green growth, circular economy development, net-zero emissions and harmonious coexistence between people and nature.
According to marine experts, the repeated appearance of dolphins near the shore of Cai Chien Island is a positive sign that the local marine environment is well protected.
According to the Department of Forestry and Forest Protection, as of May 12, more than 1,350 communes and wards nationwide were under the highest forest fire warning of Level 5, while 294 others at Level 4.
To support conservation efforts, the national park has invested in a comprehensive system of breeding enclosures, quarantine areas, reproductive research facilities, wastewater treatment systems and surveillance cameras.
The climate resilience and sustainable infrastructure project in Lang Son consists of two main components, focusing on sustainable infrastructure and environmental improvement; and technical assistance and capacity building, with AFD experts expected to train project management officials and local agencies in disaster response and climate adaptation.
Beyond helping Hai Phong tackle environmental issues, Eco Hopia's primary objective is to transfer advanced technologies to Vietnam, enabling local partners to master them and contribute to the sustainable development of the country's agricultural sector.
The number and activity of tropical cyclones and depressions over the East Sea, internationally known as the South China Sea, and their direct impacts on mainland Vietnam are expected to be comparable to the multi-year average. The long-term average over the East Sea is 5.2 typhoons, with 1.9 making landfall.
Launched in 2021 with funding from the Norwegian people through WWF-Norway and WWF-Vietnam, the “Hue – Plastic Smart City in Central Vietnam” project aims to help Hue protect rivers, wetlands and coastal ecosystems from plastic pollution while building the city into a model plastic-reduced urban area in central Vietnam.
The Bac Lieu Forest Protection Unit under the provincial Forest Protection Sub-Department said that it had completed procedures to transfer and release the animal into its natural habitat.
Initiatives on biodiversity finance, carbon credits, public – private partnerships, nature-based tourism, and private sector investment are creating more opportunities to increase resources for ecosystem conservation and restoration, said an official.
Vietnam has established a network of 180 terrestrial and marine nature reserve covering more than 2.67 million hectares. These sites are being further strengthened to improve ecological connectivity, restore habitats and conserve endangered species. Forest cover remains stable at over 42%, contributing to water protection, climate adaptation and carbon absorption.
The animals included two masked palm civets, four stump-tailed macaques, and seven rhesus macaques. All belong to Group IIB under Circular No. 85/2025/TT-BNNMT issued by the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment on the management of endangered, precious and rare species, as well as the implementation of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).
The animal was identified as a clouded monitor (Varanus nebulosus), weighing approximately two kilograms and measuring around 70 centimetres in length. The species belongs to Group IB — a category of endangered and rare forest wildlife species given the highest level of protection in Vietnam, with all forms of commercial exploitation and use strictly prohibited.
The stump-tailed macaque, scientifically known as Macaca arctoides, is classified as a rare and endangered species under Group IIB in Vietnam’s regulations on endangered wildlife management.
Ho Chi Minh City aims to push urban green coverage above 1 sq.m per person by 2030, while stepping up greenhouse gas reduction initiatives on the way to Net Zero by 2050.
Designed to process 2,000 tonnes of waste per day and generate 45MW of electricity for the national grid, the project is the first high-tech waste-to-energy plant in southwestern Hanoi, where large-scale solid waste treatment facilities have long been lacking.
The figure includes losses of 6.7 billion VND in Cao Bang province and 3.5 billion VND in Dak Lak province, while Quang Ninh and Thanh Hoa provinces have yet to report estimated damages.