Vietnam is collaborating with a key international fund to accelerate its transition to eco-friendly cooling technology and achieve its climate commitments under the Montreal Protocol.
During a working session with Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Environment Le Cong Thanh on September 15, Ms. Tina Chondraki Birmpili, Head of the Secretariat of the Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol, announced that the fund has approved 93 projects for Vietnam with a total funding of 30 million USD.
She added that many other projects will be implemented through 2026. Ms. Birmpili noted that Vietnam's HFC Phase-down Plan, Stage I, will provide valuable experience to help other countries in the region design and submit similar plans.
Deputy Minister Le Cong Thanh meets with Ms. Tina Chondraki Birmpili, Head of the Secretariat of the Multilateral Fund for the Implementation of the Montreal Protocol, on the sidelines of events commemorating International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer on September 16. Photo: Le Minh Tuan.Recently, the Multilateral Fund has financed projects focused on energy efficiency in parallel with the HFC phase-down. This is expected to provide significant financial benefits for countries and consumers, especially within the refrigeration and air conditioning sectors. The next step will be to identify solutions for managing the full lifecycle of refrigerants.
At the meeting, Deputy Minister Le Cong Thanh expressed his appreciation for the Multilateral Fund's financial mechanism, noting that it directly assists private enterprises, a feature that has been a challenge for many other environmental conventions, including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). He explained that with its open economy and a trade balance double its GDP, Vietnam is committed to and implementing solutions to enhance environmental standards for its export goods.
The Deputy Minister emphasized that cooling is no longer a luxury but has become a necessity in daily life. Therefore, it is essential to promote cooling technologies that are both environmentally friendly and energy-efficient, with suitable costs that make them accessible to the public. The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment is advising the government on policies to integrate clean technology not only into production but also into all aspects of daily life, with a priority on developing energy-saving, eco-friendly cooling solutions.
Currently, Vietnam is implementing the Montreal Protocol Capacity Building Project, the HCFC Phase-out Management Plan Stage III, and the HFC Phase-down Plan Stage I (referred to as the SMS-MP Project), in collaboration with the World Bank and UNEP. Deputy Minister Thanh requested the Fund's continued support for Vietnam to implement control substance elimination projects, especially the SMS-MP Project. He called on the fund to accompany Vietnam in fulfilling the Montreal Protocol and the Kigali Amendment. Additionally, he requested enhanced support for Vietnam to access new financial mechanisms for energy efficiency, lifecycle management, and sustainable cooling projects to collectively achieve ozone layer and climate protection goals.
The Multilateral Fund serves as the financial mechanism for the Montreal Protocol on managing and eliminating ozone-depleting substances. To date, the Fund has provided over 4 billion USD to support more than 150 countries in eliminating controlled substances through policy development, capacity building, and technology transfer. The Fund's unique approach of directly supporting businesses with financial, technical, and technological assistance during a country's implementation of the Montreal Protocol is considered a key factor in the protocol's global success.