A green building by Capital House Group. VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI – Việt Nam has now built more than 400 green buildings with a combined certified construction area of about 10 million square metres, according to the Ministry of Construction.

The number of certified green buildings has now exceeded the target set in the national energy efficiency programme for the 2019-2030 period. Under the programme, Việt Nam set a goal of constructing 80 green buildings by 2025 and 150 by 2030.

Currently, the number of green buildings in Việt Nam is at a fairly average level for the ASEAN region.

Deputy Minister of Construction Nguyễn Tường Văn said that green buildings have been developed globally since the 1990s and have gradually become a movement and a trend for investment and construction in over 100 countries and territories.

The first green buildings in Việt Nam appeared nearly two decades ago, starting after 2005.

In 2023, Việt Nam ranked 28th in the world in the number of green buildings certified under the LEED system by the US Green Building Council.

Văn said that with the Government’s support policies and voluntary applications, the development of green buildings in Việt Nam has achieved positive results.

According to the Government's Decree No 15/2021/ND-CP, green buildings are construction works designed, built and operated in conformity with criteria or standards on efficient utilisation of energy and resource saving, ensuring comfort and quality of the living environment inside and protecting the environment outside the buildings.

There are several popular green building assessment and certification systems in Việt Nam, including Lotus from the Việt Nam Green Building Council (VGBC), Edge from the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank Group (IFC-WB), the US Green Building Council's LEED and Singapore's Greenmark.

Currently, the criteria and tools used in evaluating and certifying green buildings in Việt Nam are quite complete, specific and transparent.

The standards are easy to evaluate and allow certification of diverse types of buildings. However, the deputy minister said there is still a need for experts and technical resources to periodically review, update and supplement the criteria to make them match reality.

As people and organisations are encouraged to develop green buildings, allocating resources to support and promote investment in the development of sustainable and effective green buildings is necessary, according to the Ministry of Construction.

To promote the development of green buildings and efficient energy use and reduce environmental impacts and greenhouse gas emissions, the ministry is reviewing green building regulations and developing new policies and standards, as well as a roadmap to make green building criteria mandatory. VNS