The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) currently helps 320 Vietnamese small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) carry out 320 energy-saving projects in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emission and production costs. The SMEs have received a combined VND22 billion ($1.19 million) from the state budget to implement energy-saving projects, said Nguyen Dinh Hau, director of the national energy-saving plan. The projects have helped the SMEs economize 125,000 tons of oil equivalent and reduce 526,380 tons of CO2, the Thoi bao Kinh te newspaper reported. The SMEs now accounts for 95% of total enterprises in Vietnam, working mainly in pottery and porcelain, brick, pulp and paper, textile, and food processing industries.
