The signing ceremony between the MoIT and IDH. — Photo moit.gov.vn

HÀ NỘI — The Energy Efficiency and Sustainable Development Department and the Netherlands-based Sustainable Trade Initiative (IDH) on Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding to support the sustainable development of the textile and footwear industry in Việt Nam on Thursday.

The event formalises the collaboration between the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT), IDH and associations within the textile and footwear sector to develop and implement initiatives and priority activities for the sustainable development of the industry. This aligns with the Government’s guidelines and policies on sustainable production, consumption and development, focusing on energy efficiency, the circular economy, climate change adaptation, and green growth in the near future.

The department's director Nguyễn Thị Lâm Giang said though the textile and footwear industry in Việt Nam has recently made significant contributions to the country's economy, it has also faced competitive pressures and challenges in resource and energy use, environmental pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

The cooperation between the MoIT and IDH as well as associations and relevant parties within the MoU's framework will help promote the application of sustainable development models, expand the market for eco-friendly products and enhance the competitiveness of domestic textile and footwear enterprises, contributing to the implementation of Việt Nam's international commitments on sustainable development and climate change, she added.

Giang shared some of the achievements of national action programmes on sustainable production and consumption in using energy efficiently. She added that recently, the ministry has organised a number of tasks to support textile and footwear enterprises in piloting a number of sustainable production and consumption models for efficient energy use.

In the future, the ministry also plans to implement additional tasks related to the circular economy in the field of industry and trade, she said. — VNS