HANOI: Vietnam’s Institute of Strategy and Policy on Natural Resources and Environment is actively researching and identifying the value of biodiversity in the country as part of efforts to develop a mechanism for biodiversity credits.

This is a preparatory step towards ensuring by 2035 under global agreements, polluters, emitters and those responsible for environmental harm will be required to pay fees, while those contributing to biodiversity conservation will receive financial support to carry out their tasks.

Nguyen Dinh Tho, director of the institute, told Viet Nam News that Vietnam, along with the rest of the world, was grappling with three global crises of climate change, environmental pollution and biodiversity loss.

The institute had over recent years worked alongside the Natural Resources and Environment Ministry and the government to address the three critical issues.

In terms of climate change, Vietnam had actively engaged in global commitments to reduce emissions by 2050 and was collaborating internationally to establish carbon credits and carbon markets.

Regarding environmental pollution, the institute, together with the ministry and the government, are in active negotiations to establish a mechanism for plastic credits.

The global mechanism for plastic credits is hoped to be approved at the fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, in Busan, South Korea, later this month.

Additionally, the institute is now working with Dragon Capital and the University of Exeter, Britain, to assess the value of biodiversity in Vietnam.

The institute had already undertaken preliminary research on the development of biodiversity credits, with the goal of formalising them by 2035.

“The initial steps are part of a broader effort to align with global commitments to protect and conserve biodiversity,” Tho said.

There are still many problems related to how to determine the value of biodiversity in the country, he added.

“The concept of biodiversity credits is still new and complex,” he said.

“While carbon credits are difficult to establish, plastic credits present an even greater challenge. Biodiversity credits, however, are expected to be the most challenging of all three credit types.”

Tho also said building an economy focused on restoring biodiversity and ecosystems would provide a foundation for a world in which we can live in a cleaner, greener and more beautiful environment.

Tho further emphasised that the Vietnamese government had made specific commitments to promote biodiversity conservation and ensure a harmonious balance between economic development and the protection of natural ecosystems.

The government has consistently highlighted the importance of integrating development with the preservation of natural ecosystems.

At the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, in 2021, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said: “Addressing climate change and restoring nature must become the highest priority in all development decisions.”

The commitment was reflected in the prime minister’s approval on Feb 1, 2019, for the National Strategy on Biodiversity until 2030.

The strategy focuses on developing innovative financial mechanisms to support conservation efforts.

Tho also said that Vietnam’s economy had already been linked to biodiversity protection through the 2020 Law on Environmental Protection, which includes provisions for ecosystem service payments related to wildlife, plants and natural habitats essential to human life.

“Though Vietnam has yet to fully develop a biodiverse economy, strategies for protecting forests, mangrove ecosystems, marine biodiversity and other critical habitats are already embedded in national development plans,” he said.

 — ANN