There is Green Revolution in Vietnam. Being one of the world’s most vulnerable nations to climate change, Vietnam is taking steps to not only mitigate but also adapt to climate change. One of these steps is the development of Vietnam sustainable cities.
There are four core elements of sustainable cities: public transportation, green buildings, green spaces, and smart cities. The Vietnamese government has been attempting to improve all four so that it can build sustainable cities that can meet the increasing standard of living that its citizens demand.
Public Transportation
Currently, Vietnam’s public transportation is still underdeveloped with only about 10% of the country’s total urban land is transport-related. In Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, two cities set to be sustainable cities, steps have been taken to improve public transportation.
In Ho Chi Minh City, a commuter ferry system has started to be implemented while Hanoi has a Bus Rapid Transit system. The construction of public transportation in both cities is progressing but at the moment, it is facing delays due to financial issues.
The Vietnamese government also has plans to shift to electric vehicles to become more sustainable. Government initiatives are implemented over the years to introduce the shift, including incentives like lower vehicle tax rates for citizens who shift to electric vehicles.
The current number of electric vehicles in Vietnam is low, with only about. 1,000 electric vehicles in circulation and 2,000 battery charging stations spread across the country. Vietnam aims to increase the annual electric vehicles production to 250,000 and deploys 20,000 battery charging stations by 2022.
Green Buildings in Vietnam Sustainable Cities
In 2017, there were 60 green building projects in the country, all of which are situated within the area of Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. Now, the concept of smart homes and large-scale solar power generating systems for commercial projects are becoming increasingly popular in Vietnam.
The government also started to promote green growth initiatives. These initiatives have two aims: protecting the environment and reaching the energy efficiency goals set by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.
Green Spaces
Another important core element of sustainable cities is green spaces. Both Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi have taken initiative to expand their green spaces.
Ho Chi Minh City focuses on developing green spaces within new urban developments and residential projects, while Hanoi plans to have a total of 60 parks by 2050.
Smart Cities
Smart cities rely heavily on technological advancement. Thus, for sustainable cities to succeed, there has to be a digital transformation in Vietnam.
The Vietnamese government has started transforming Vietnam sustainable cities as the Sustainable Smart City Development Project 2018 – 2025 has been approved.
Currently, there are 33 cities and provinces that 33 cities and provinces that have started implementing smart city initiatives with four cities as the forerunners of smart cities. The four cities are Ho Chi Minh, Hanoi, Can Tho, and Da Nang.
Developing Vietnam sustainable cities is a challenging task, especially in the face of rapid urbanization that the country undergoes. Although the development process is gradual, so far Vietnam has made a lot of progress in all four core components of sustainable cities.
