Six new private sector partnerships, announced on November 29 under the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT)’s Business Partnerships Platform (BPP), will promote the growth of sustainable carbon markets that deliver significant social and environmental benefits to communities in Vietnam.

The six multistakeholder partnerships, supported by investment of $3.3 million from DFAT, will leverage more than $3.7 million in private sector investment and resources towards improving the enabling environment for carbon markets projects in Vietnam that are able to deliver verifiable and sustainable social and environmental outcomes.

They will test and trial new approaches within voluntary market frameworks to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, lower carbon market entry barriers for producers, build the capacity of local stakeholders, and deliver important social benefits.

“Australia is ambitious for what we can achieve together with Vietnam, and the region, in confronting the challenges of climate change,” said Chargé d’Affairs Mark Tattersall. “These new BPP Carbon Markets partnerships are part of Australia’s commitment to supporting enhanced climate action in our region, including through climate partnerships that also work to deliver social and environmental benefits to communities.”

The six partnerships are:

- Incentivizing low emissions rice production through satellite technology: A partnership with CarbonFarm Technology, the International Rice Research Institute, Rikolto, and DFAT to train and support rice producers to move to lower emission practices.

- Scaling carbon markets access for sustainable rice producers: A partnership between the International Rice Research Institute - Vietnam, Gold Standard, and DFAT to develop a new methodology for generating carbon credits from rice production.

- Enabling nature-based carbon projects: A partnership with NatureCo, One Tree Planted, the Center for Nature Conservation and Development, Cooper Energy, and DFAT to identify opportunities for Nature-based Solutions (NbS) in Vietnam, work with local organizations to build carbon skills, and develop an NbS pilot project focused on carbon mitigation through reforestation.

- Upland crop planting for incomes and carbon sequestration: A partnership with Greenfield Consulting and Development, the University of Queensland, the Forest Science Center of Northwest Vietnam, and DFAT to generate carbon credits by planting timber and multi-purpose (fruit and timber) trees on sloping cropland in Son La province.

- Biochar for carbon removal and improved livelihoods: A partnership with Biocare Projects, EnergyLink Services, the University of Adelaide, the Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology, Mai Anh Dong Thap, and DFAT to establish biochar production in the Mekong Delta.

- Promoting nature-based solutions through afforestation carbon projects: A partnership with South Pole, Energy and Environment Consultancy (VNEEC), and DFAT on Nature-based Solutions carbon projects in Vietnam, and supporting an enabling environment for Jurisdictional and Nested REDD+ projects using existing afforestation projects in northwest Vietnam as a model.