A Vietnam Coast Guard ship on patrol around the Lý Sơn Island in the central province of Quảng Ngãi. — VNA/VNS Photo Trần Tĩnh

HÀ NỘI — Experts discussed plans for Việt Nam’s integrated coastal zone management (ICZM) by 2020 during a conference yesterday in Hà Nội.

The conference, organised by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, saw representatives from 28 provinces and cities along the coast.

Assessing ICZM in Việt Nam in the period 2016-18, director of the Vietnam Administration of Seas and Islands Tạ Đình Thi highly appreciated provinces and cities for actively conducting programmes and projects on ICZM.

Several provinces and cities recorded good results such as Nam Định, Thừa Thiên-Huế, Đà Nẵng and Bà Rịa-Vũng Tàu and can be good examples for others to learn from.

A system of policies and laws on natural resources, seas and islands protection were compiled giving a suitable legal framework for localities, said Thi.

Seas and islands sub-departments were founded in provinces and cities helping local people’s committees in the work.

Financial and technical support from international organisations, especially the Partnerships in Environmental Management in the Seas of East Asia (PEMSEA) has helped Việt Nam better manage coastal areas at central and provincial levels.

However, he said, Việt Nam’s ICZM strategy in the period 2016-18 still had limitations at different levels.

The State budget for the work was limited, as priority must be given to urgent projects.

In 2017, several environmental organisations were merged thus training and conducting duties related to ICZM was interrupted.

Localities met difficulties in setting up and conducting programmes of coastal natural resources management.

Talking at the conference, experts proposed measures to be taken for better ICZM.

Their proposals included giving more technical guidance related to sustainable exploitation and use of natural resources, and more technical guidance for coastal management.

They urged for international cooperation in coastal management, and call for more funding from official direct assistance.

The Vietnam Administration of Seas and Islands said it was necessary to implement the East Asian seas sustainable development strategy in the period 2015-19. The strategy has been implemented in 14 provinces and cities. The project set up a foundation for coastal management in the country.

Việt Nam has more than 3,260km of coast running across 28 of the 63 provinces and cities. Coastal localities are home to nearly half of the country’s population. — VNS