Ho Chi Minh City and Rotterdam to cooperate in fighting climate change and flood management

The head of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee and the Rotterdam City government signed a memorandum of cooperation on responding to climate change and flood management in Ho Chi Minh City on July 31 (local time), in Rotterdam City, Kingdom of the Netherlands.

The aim of this Memorandum of Understanding is to establish a foundation that will facilitate cooperation between the two countries in response to climate change and flood management through a series of projects. Namely, it will contribute to improving Ho Chi Minh City's resilience to the impacts of climate change and effectively mitigate the damage caused by floods in the city. In addition, port management agencies from both Ho Chi Minh City and Rotterdam will participate in the discussion on the development of ports in the city.

According to the memorandum of cooperation, both countries shall jointly study the state of climate change and flooding in Ho Chi Minh City. Subsequently, the parties will propose detailed cooperation projects in accordance with the planning in relation to specific terms of reference. On the other hand, Ho Chi Minh City and Rotterdam will promote information exchange, technology transfer, and application of science and information technology in the construction, management, and operation of seaports. Additionally, the parties will develop a transport infrastructure system that connects different seaports. Various maritime channels and port logistics systems will be implemented such as logistics centers and Inland Container Depots.

The government of Rotterdam City and the Rotterdam Port Management Board will coordinate with Ho Chi Minh City to encourage Dutch businesses to invest in the construction of new, modern seaports that meet green standards.

Mr. Enes Yigit, Deputy Mayor of Rotterdam City, highly regarded the cooperative relationship between Ho Chi Minh and Rotterdam City. According to him, both cities, which serve as hubs for economic development in Vietnam and the Netherlands, are impacted by the rising sea level.

Mr. Enes Yigit states that Rotterdam City wishes to learn from Ho Chi Minh City's responses to climate change as well as share experiences and technical solutions with them.

According to forecasts, climate change in Ho Chi Minh City will develop erratically within the next few years. Accordingly, the city's rainfall in the last six months of 2023 will be 5 to 10% lower compared to the former average. Additionally, this figure is projected to increase from 10 to 12% in the next five years. The peak tidal water level in the first six months of 2023 measured at Phu An station was 1.74 meters.

Regarding the implementation of construction projects for disaster prevention and climate change response in Ho Chi Minh City, Mr. Duong Anh Duc, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, reported that the People's Committee has deployed an implementation plan for the National Strategy on Natural Disaster Prevention and Control until 2030. Accordingly, the city is aiming to reduce the amount of damage caused by natural disasters between 2021 and 2030 by 50% compared to the period between 2011 and 2020.

Mr. Duong Anh Duc requested Rotterdam city to cooperate with Ho Chi Minh City in improving disaster forecasting and warning capacity through increased investment in research; transferring and upgrading technology for monitoring, analyzing, forecasting and warning of natural disasters; researching and applying new materials and advanced technologies in housing and the construction of natural disaster prevention infrastructure in order to ensure sustainability and environmental friendliness.

At the meeting, Deputy Mayor of Rotterdam city also presented about the city's diverse solutions in managing flood risks, including the construction of a large-scale dyke system, the construction of infrastructure that both store water and support community activities, bouyant constructions, and so on.

A representative of the Rotterdam Port Management Board presented about various seaport management models around the world, the cooperation between the government of Rotterdam and the private sector in the operation of Rotterdam port, and projects that the city has participated in other countries.