Approval of the Master plan for the sustainable exploitation and use of coastal resources in Vietnam for the period 2021-2023, with a vision to 2050

Approval of the Master plan for the sustainable exploitation and use of coastal resources in Vietnam for the period 2021-2023, with a vision to 2050 (Internet image)

On October 7, 2024, the Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam issued Decision 1117/QD-TTg approving the Master plan for the sustainable exploitation and use of coastal resources in Vietnam for the period 2021-2023, with a vision to 2050.

Approval of the Master plan for the sustainable exploitation and use of coastal resources in Vietnam for the period 2021-2023, with a vision to 2050

The Prime Minister of the Government of Vietnam approved the Master plan for the sustainable exploitation and use of coastal resources in Vietnam for the period 2021-2023, with a vision to 2050, with the following perspectives, objectives, and visions:

(1) Perspectives

- To specify the objectives, orientations, and main solutions of the National Master Plan, the Strategy for Sustainable Development of Vietnam's Marine Economy to 2030, with a vision to 2045, and the Strategy for Sustainable Exploitation, Use of Resources, and Marine and Island Environmental Protection to 2030, with a vision to 2050, in line with and consistent with the National Marine Spatial Planning and National Land Use Planning.

- Protect, conserve, and restore ecosystems, biodiversity; maintain the functions, structures, and capabilities to provide essential products and services of coastal ecosystems for the socio-economic development of coastal areas; prevent and control pollution, environmental incidents, and actively respond to climate change and sea-level rise.

- Enhance the capacity for integrated resource management and coastal environmental protection; ensure effective linkage from planning, investigation, exploration, exploitation, to resource processing and use; encourage the application of advanced, modern exploitation and resource use models in a green, sustainable direction, within the carrying capacity of ecosystems and environmental bearing limits.

- Ensure the people's right to access the sea; preserve values, promote historical traditions, cultural identity of the sea, and ensure national defense and security within the coastal zone.

- Expand and enhance international cooperation; prioritize fields of science, technology, basic research, and focused investment attraction in the management, exploitation, and use of coastal resources.

(2) Objectives by 2030

• General Objectives

Effectively manage, exploit, and use coastal resources, contributing to making Vietnam a strong maritime nation, wealthy from the sea, sustainable development. Prosperous, secure, and safe, ensuring livelihoods and improving the living standards of coastal communities, associated with the conservation and development of natural, ecological, and cultural values; proactively prevent and combat natural disasters, effectively respond to climate change and sea-level rise; strictly control, prevent the trend of environmental pollution, and degradation of coastal ecosystems.

• Specific Objectives

- Protect, maintain, and restore ecosystems, biodiversity, and other values of the coastal area; increase conservation area, protect natural, marine ecological values, and mangrove forests in coastal areas, contributing to achieving a minimum area goal of 6% of the national marine area.

- Arrange and allocate space rationally for sectors and fields, and fundamentally address overlaps and conflicts in the exploitation and use of coastal resources, ensure the restoration capabilities of ecosystems, protect the coastal environment, contribute to achieving targets: 100% hazardous waste, domestic solid waste, 100% plastic waste at tourist beaches, resorts, and marine conservation areas are collected and treated; 100% of economic zones, industrial parks, and coastal urban areas are planned and built in a sustainable, ecological, intelligent, and safe direction, with centralized wastewater treatment systems meeting environmental standards.

- Ensure people's right to access the sea, improve livelihoods and raise living standards for coastal communities, eliminate exceptionally difficult communes in coastal areas, and contribute to raising the average per capita income of coastal provinces and cities to at least 1.2 times the national average; protect, preserve cultural heritage, promote historical traditions, and marine cultural identity, contributing to building and developing Vietnamese human culture comprehensively in line with the modern era.

- Closely combine national defense, security with socio-economic development and vice versa; implement defense works following the military posture plan in the coastal defense zone; proactively cooperate internationally on resources, biodiversity, marine and island environment with close coordination among sectors and levels during implementation.

- Effectively support state management of resources, environmental protection of the sea and islands through integrated management methods, creating a basis for 100% of provinces and centrally-run cities with the sea to build and effectively deploy integrated coastal resource management programs.

(3) Vision to 2050

Coastal resources are managed, exploited, and used effectively and sustainably to develop comprehensively maritime economic sectors, contributing to making the coastal area a vibrant economic - cultural development center, attracting investment, serving as a gateway connecting developmental space between land and sea, fostering trade connection between Vietnam and the world; building coastal areas as a firm support base for advancing to the sea and creating motivation for other regions across the country to develop; achieving a clean, safe environment where natural, ecological, scenic, cultural, and historical values are protected, preserved, and developed; ensuring strong national defense and security, towards the goal of making our nation strong from the sea, wealthy from the sea, sustainable development, prosperity, security, and safety, achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.

More details can be found in Decision 1161/QD-TTg which comes into force in Vietnam from October 11, 2024.

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