Viet Nam, Norway and UN Announce US$30 Million for REDD+ in Viet Nam at UN-REDD COP18 Event

Doha, December 05 (QNA) - During the UN-REDD Programme side event today at the Doha Climate Change Conference (COP18), Norway signed a US$30 million financing agreement with the United Nations to support a second phase of the UN-REDD National Programme in Viet Nam. This second phase (2012-2015) will significantly scale up the work Vietnam has been doing, with support from Norway and the UN-REDD Programme since 2009, to Reduce Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD+). As one of the original pilot countries of the UN-REDD Programme, Viet Nam has been a REDD+ leader over the past four years, trailblazing various areas of readiness work, such as developing fair and equitable benefit distribution systems for REDD+, and conducting robust stakeholder engagement to carry out activities such as participatory forest monitoring and ensuring the free, prior and informed consent of indigenous peoples and other forest dependent communities in REDD+ efforts. "Results of the UN-REDD National Programme's Phase I have created a solid foundation for the next phase of REDD+ in Viet Nam. With strong efforts and international support, Viet Nam has been able to increase forest coverage from 27 per cent in 1990 to nearly 40 per cent now," said Dr. Cao Duc Phat, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development of Viet Nam. At today's UN-REDD Programme event, Viet Nam and Norway signed a broad joint declaration on REDD+ cooperation, recognizing Viet Nam's plan for a 20 per cent reduction in emissions from the agriculture and rural development sector by 2020, which includes forestry. The declaration also highlights Viet Nam's plans to further develop policies and measures that address the drivers of deforestation, and increase overall forest cover to 45 per cent by 2020. "With this cooperation we wish to contribute to Viet Nam's efforts to reduce emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, including measures to protect the natural forests and unique biodiversity by controlling illegal logging, improving forest monitoring, and involving local communities while strengthening their rights and participation," said Norway s Minister of the Environment, Bard Vegar Solhjell. Before the signing of Viet Nam and Norway's REDD+ agreement and declaration, high-level representatives from Costa Rica, Mexico and Nigeria presented their latest progress in the areas of REDD+ safeguards and legal preparedness to more than 100 participants and REDD+ stakeholders in attendance. "Together, the UN-REDD Programme's 46 partner countries account for more than half the world s tropical forests. Today's presentations from Costa Rica, Mexico and Nigeria, and the new agreement and declaration from Viet Nam and Norway, demonstrate that strong political will exists to conserve these precious forests that play a crucial role in mitigating climate change," said Mette Loyche Wilkie, Interim Head of the UN-REDD Programme Secretariat. (QNA)