ADB to Help Vietnam Farmers Build over 13,600 Biogas Plants in 2016

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will help Vietnamese farmers build 13,654 biogas plants worth over VND175 billion ($7.8 million) in 2016 under the Low Carbon Agricultural Support project, which is expected to reduce pollution from agricultural waste and create a healthier environment in the country. This is part of the $76.8 million project which is implemented in six years from 2013, with the participation of ten provinces namely Lao Cai, Son La, Phu Tho, Bac Giang, Nam Dinh, Ha Tinh, Binh Dinh, Tien Giang, Ben Tre and Soc Trang. The ADB granted $66.8 million in loans to the project and the corresponding fund of $10 million was provided by the Vietnamese government. The project will mainstream climate-smart agricultural waste management practices through supporting the construction of over 36,000 small, medium and large-sized biogas facilities in the ten localities. This year, the project will focus on animal husbandry waste management, credit for biogas value chains, transfer of low carbon agricultural production technology and project management. Aiming to build a sustainable and environmentally-friendly agriculture, the project targets efficient use of natural resources and agricultural by-products, effective management of post-harvest processing and preservation activities. It also eyes to create clean energies and improve livelihoods of rural households. Last year, in addition to the construction of 15,393 biogas plants across the ten provinces, the project supported 23 studies on low carbon agricultural production and provided training courses on biogas plant operation for more than 30,800 farmers. (Vietnam News Agency Mar 3)