8 October 2021 | UCLG ASPAC, taking the role of Secretariat of the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy (GCoM) for the Southeast Asia (SEA) region, continues its commitment to support cities and local governments on climate action. In three years ahead, UCLG ASPAC will oversee the overall project implementation of GCoM SEA in close collaboration with the network such as Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), Institute for Natural Resources and Environment (ISPONRE), Centre for Climate Risk and Opportunity Management (CCROM), and AUN, with the funding support from the European Union (EU).
UCLG ASPAC is glad that every stakeholder involved has expressed their enthusiasm to succeed in this project as shown in the bilateral meeting for GCoM Asia Project Implementation in Vietnam held on 8 October 2021. Dr. Rui Ludovino (First Counsellor of Climate Action, Environment, Employment, and Social Policies of the European Union Delegation to Vietnam) and Dr. Bernadia Irawati Tjandradewi (Secretary-General of UCLG ASPAC and the GCoM SEA Secretariat) were present at the event to deliver their opening remarks.
“Climate change is a global crisis and we should work together to find a solution. 2021 is a crucial year for implementing the global climate agenda and securing ambitious mid and long-term national commitments by all Parties as COP26 approaches. The EU is fully committed and is taking all the steps to ensure is doing its part. We are keen on working with all partners, developed and developing countries to share best practices and support mitigation and adaptation actions all over the world. The EU and its Member States are the largest contributor of public climate finance to developing countries. Continuing from the successful IUC Asia Project, the EU extends now its support through the implementation of the GCoM in Asia Project. The EU encourages the leadership role of Vietnam’s city governments in planning for climate actions, with technical assistance from domestic and international expertise, stakeholders, and the supportive contribution from the central government,” said Dr. Rui Ludovino.
Dr. Bernadia Irawati Tjandredawi in her remarks said, “Local government and cities cannot perform without strong support from central government. I think it’s good that the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE) has been providing a good enabling environment for local governments to act. Therefore, we hope that we can get the endorsement from MoNRE for the overall implementation of GCoM Asia Project in Vietnam. As the GCoM Southeast Asia Secretariat, we have the role of doing coordination of project activities in 4 Southeast Asian countries. In Vietnam, we will certainly work much closer with our member, the Association of Cities of Vietnam (ACVN). As the UCLG ASPAC is the host of GCoM SEA Secretariat and the ASEAN Mayors Forum (AMF) Secretariat, we will try to put the synergy between GCoM and AMF. We will provide a chance for cities from four countries [Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam] to interact with each other, which can upscale this project’s results. Whatever actions we take, we have to make sure that it benefits the citizens, community, and society. Let’s have a solid collaboration among us!”
Also attending the meeting was Dr. Ngo Trung Hai, General Secretary of ACVN, saying “Vietnamese cities/towns are where most of the resources are used for city development, and also where high emissions of carbon and greenhouse gases are emitted. They are more and more affected by climate changes in their daily living conditions, local economic development, and growth in recent years. ACVN member cities are highly interested to join the GCoM Asia network and project activities for learning new knowledge, practices of climate adaptation, for their local climate action plans, for sustainable urban environmental protection with high resilience, contributing to the national and local sustainable development priorities.”
In the meeting, the GCoM Asia Project Plan between 2021-2023 was shared with participants from MoNRE, ACVN, and the Institute for Natural Resources and Environment (ISPONRE, under the MoNRE). The meeting discussed the selection of 25 Vietnamese cities that will receive trainings on Mitigation and Adaptation. Four pilot cities of Vietnam, namely Nam Dinh City, Hue City, Cao Lanh City, and Ben Tre City, are to prepare their local Climate Action Plans (CAPs) with the technical support of international and domestic expertise, particularly the technical assistance of the ISPONRE.
An agreement was given upon the recommended list of cities for joining the GCoM network and pilot CAPs; the Project Work Plan, the Project Technical Approaches and the roles of stakeholders were also agreed. Above all, the strong city leadership and commitment are the keys to the project ambitious targets of more signatory cities and local governments from Vietnam and their improved capacity of climate actions for Vietnamese cities.
