Resolution On Climate-Resilient Development Of Mekong Delta To Be Reviewed

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (third from right) visits Loc Troi Group's Dinh Thanh Agriculture Research Center in the Southern province of An Giang on March 14, 2017. Photo: VGP

     >>> Highlights of Resolution On Climate-Resilient Development Of Mekong Delta

The Resolution, signed by the Government chief on November 17, 2017, figures out vision to 2100 and objectives to 2050 as well as strategic orientations and solutions to advance the development of the Mekong Delta.

The Delta accounts for 12% of the national area, 19% of the national population, a large network of rivers, canals and ditches.

It has superb potentials for agricultural development, food industry, tourism, renewable energy.

The region is the largest agricultural production center in Viet Nam as it contributes up to 50% of national rice production, 65% of national aquaculture production and 70% of fruits of the country; 95% of national export rice and 60% of national exported fish.

However, the Delta is sensitive to the changes of nature, according to the Resolution.

The magnitude of climate change and sea level rise is superior than forecasted, causing extreme weather events, affecting the livelihoods and human lives.

The exploitation of water resources on the upper reaches of the delta, especially the construction of hydropower dams, has changed the flows of water, reduced sediment and fisheries resources, causing serious saltwater intrusion, negatively affect the socioeconomic development of the region.

The negative impacts of high-intensity economic growth of the region become more acute and cause many problems such as environmental pollution, serious ecological imbalances, land subsidence, groundwater depletion, coastal erosion; many natural forest areas, especially mangroves, cajuput forests, protected forests have been converted for other uses or severely degraded. In addition, over-exploitation of sediment, the construction of houses and infrastructure along river banks, canals increase the risk of landslide.

Meanwhile, the state management in some sectors and the government decentralization are often overlapped and hardly synchronized; coordination mechanisms for the Mekong Delta development have not been effective./.

By Quang Minh