Vietnam
Việt Nam
Overall NDC Equity Score
Aspiring
Emissions Reductions
Exemplary
The NDC implementation will lead to major and fair reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, per historical responsibility.
Gender Justice
Aspiring
The NDC makes a strong effort to achieve gender mainstreaming, but lacks gender focused research and representation of the LGBT community.
Youth Inclusion
Average
The NDC meets basic expectations in youth inclusion, but is still not impactful enough to ensure youth are recognized as agents of change.
Summary
Việt Nam is at high risk of vulnerability to climate change, with 70% of the population living in coastal areas and low-lying deltas and 75% of the country’s population living in rural areas. On emissions, the updated NDC promises to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 9% (unconditional) and 27% (conditional) by 2030 with the goal to achieve net-zero by 2050. The NDC also aspires to top deforestation by 2030 and reduce methane emissions by 30% from 2020 levels, joining more than 100 other nations in making similar commitments.
On gender mainstreaming, Việt Nam’s updated NDC indicated women’s vulnerabilities under the specific context of climate change and socioeconomic realities; however, there was no mention of women’s roles as active stakeholders contributing to climate action. There is a National Gender Equality Strategy, which should be utilized to inform climate action and adaptation efforts.
On youth inclusion, youth vulnerabilities were not taken into account in Việt Nam’s NDC. In 2021 and with UNDP’s support, Vietnamese youth developed the country’s first special report, “Youth for Climate Action in Việt Nam”, which claims that there are four main barriers preventing young people from taking climate action: financial restrictions, a lack of stakeholder support, and skill and technology limitations. Recognising youth as stakeholders in climate action and working to reduce some of the barriers could contribute to further meaningful youth engagement.
Highlights
- Sets out to achieve net-zero GHG emissions by 2050 and stop deforestation by 2030.
- Provided a strong connection between climate action and socioeconomic factors.
- Emphasized the importance of climate adaptation.
- Recognizes children with disabilities, children in poor families, migrant children, girls as vulnerable to climate change.
- Highlights specific details on the disproportionate vulnerability of women to the climate crisis, particularly as a majority of the country's farmers.
- Mentioned the significance of education on climate risks and related disasters.
Lowlights
- Fails to mention young people as vulnerable to the climate crisis or key stakeholders in implementing solutions.
- Most references to gender justice are in reference to the role of women as farmers.
- No mention of women's roles as active stakeholders contributing to climate action.
Key Recommendations
This analysis found that there are numerous references to the vulnerability of women and girls to the climate crisis, particularly with respect to their roles as farmers, however, fails to recognize the importance of their role as key stakeholders and leaders. From the Constitution to the National Gender Equality Strategy and Vietnam’s other high-level political documents/resolutions, there is legislation specifically addressing gender equality. However, Vietnam’s advancement of women in politics is inconsistent, and the nation runs the risk of falling short of the goals it set for itself by 2025 and 2030.
Following their revised NDC, the Youth4Climate Initiative was launched by UNDP Việt Nam office to increase youth understanding of climate change and build their capacity to undertake climate action. This initiative represents an important process and model example of how Việt Nam could strengthen their engagement in the future. The following are key recommendations for the improvement of future NDCs and other national climate plans:
For Gender Justice
- Increase climate finance to sustain the involvement of women in climate action.
- Integrate gender equality across their NDC development plan.
- Highlight gender-related vulnerabilities beyond the agriculture sector.
For Youth Inclusion
- Create a mechanism to better understand youth perspectives and their gaps in climate action.
- Develop a YEP (Youth Engagement Plan) to strengthen youth inclusion.
- Utilize takeaways from the Youth4Climate document to better center youth perspectives in the NDC.
NDC Ambassador - Author
