Environmental Protection Considered Key Factor for Vietnam Growth: PM

Environmental protection is considered on of key factors for economic growth in Vietnam, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said at a meeting in Hanoi on Sept 30. Conserving environment becomes both goal and basic tenet of sustainable development in Vietnam in the context that it has stressed on climate change resilience programs in the past years, the PM said. He affirmed that the government has increased investment in the work to VND11.4 trillion ($511 million) in 2015, doubling that in 2010. The PM noted that the government must complete legal documents on environmental protection and strictly control the import of technological devices to avoid being a dumping ground for developed countries. The Ministry of Finance is mulling over to grant tax incentives to companies that carry out green development projects. International experts warned that Vietnam would face worse environmental pollution by four or five times though the country would see a double growth in gross domestic product (GDP) in the next 10 years. If GDP grows averagely 5%, Vietnam will face environmental pollution-caused damage equal to 3% of GDP, they noted. Statistics by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MONRE) showed that households’ solid waste reached 23 million tons in 2014. Currently, there remain 5,400 containers of secondhand tires stuck at ports. Only 190 out of 209 industrial parks are equipped with wastewater treatment systems. The MONRE said that Vietnam needs an estimated $30 billion for green growth strategies by 2020. (Thoi Bao Kinh Te Vietnam – Vietnam Economic Time Oct 1 p4, Tin Tuc – News Oct 1 p4, VnExpress.net Sept 30)