Using 3,000 billion VND of ODA loans to respond to climate change

Concluding the meeting of the Government Standing Committee on capital allocation for projects responding to climate change, the Prime Minister allowed the use of VND 3,000 billion in ODA loans through the Support Program for Response to Climate Change (SP-RCC) to invest in projects responding to climate change in 2015.

Planting mangrove forests in Quang Ninh coastal areas. Illustration photo: VNA

Specifically, the scope of implementation includes 16 transitional projects that have been allocated capital from the SP-RCC Program from previous years; focusing on coastal mangrove planting projects and upstream protection forests (including afforestation items of projects in the SP-RCC Program list); giving priority to coastal mangrove planting projects; key sea dyke projects responding to climate change, with direct impacts on residential areas.

The Prime Minister assigned the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to coordinate with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and relevant agencies and localities to review the scale and investment capital of 16 transitional projects.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development shall preside over and coordinate with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and relevant agencies to review and select the remaining projects.

The Ministry of Planning and Investment, based on the reviewed list of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, shall coordinate with the Ministry of Finance and relevant agencies to synthesize a report to the Prime Minister for approval of the list and the expected capital allocation for the projects before September 30, 2014 to submit to the National Assembly for decision in the 2015 state budget estimate (estimated development investment expenditure of the central budget, foreign capital portion).

The Prime Minister noted that disbursement will only be made when projects ensure full compliance with legal procedures.

Localities shall approve projects in accordance with investment management regulations and shall only implement them after receiving appraisal opinions from the sectoral management ministries on the technical design of the project. Sectoral management ministries must establish a mechanism for close supervision to ensure that the support funds are used effectively and avoid waste.

According to Vietnam+