Can Tho (VNA) ﷽– Germany is interested in climate change adaptation projects in the Mekong Delta, Vice President of the German parliament Edelgard Bulmahn said at a working session with the Steering Committee for the Southeastern Region in Can Tho city on November 17.

She highly valued the role of the Mekong Delta in food production and rice export, and expressed her impression on the outcomes of coastal management projects. German ministries and sectors pay special attention to climate change-related issues, she said, adding that her government has been determined to develop renewable energy to mimimise factors causing environmental changes since 1999-2000. Renewable energy has accounted for up to 30 percent of the European country’s electricity generation, she said, stressing that Germany is a reliable partner of countries, including Vietnam , in this field, she confirmed. According to Edelgard Bulmahn, the challenges that the Mekong Delta is facing are not only of Vietnam but also the international community, thus requiring the involvement of both domestic and foreign scientists and multiple countries. Lying at the end of the Mekong River , the Mekong Delta has been bearing a lot of brunt from climate change and rising sea level, said Nguyen Quoc Viet, deputy head of the Steering Committee. He noted that the climate change process has become quicker in recent years, causing negative impacts on local agricultural production and other socio-economic sectors, as well as land, water, transport infrastructure, and irrigation. The serious drought and saltwater intrusion in the 2016 dry season raged through 10 out of the 13 Mekong Delta localities, resulting in water shortage for at least 290,000 households and economic losses of over 15 trillion VND (675 million USD), he cited. The Vietnamese Government has enacted a number of measures to cope with climate change across the country, he said, adding that the Mekong Delta is completing a regional coordination mechanism, especially in planning and building transport and irrigation works, controlling the level of salinity, managing forests, and protecting coastal areas, among others. Through the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ), the Mekong Delta is implementing a project on enhancing the climate change resilience, and a programme on general management of coastal areas to support localities in building adaptive models in agriculture. The Steering Committee for the Southeastern Region called on Germany to expand such projects and support the green growth target of the region.-VNA