Vietnam rice sector carbon accreditation strategy presented at multi-stakeholder dialogue

Can Tho City, Vietnam, 01 September 2023 —The International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), in collaboration with Vietnam’s Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development (IPSARD) and Department of Crop Production (DCP), conducted the Multi-stakeholder Dialogue on Carbon Markets in Agriculture Workshop on 24-25 August 2023.

The workshop aimed to identify priorities for inclusive engagement in the carbon market and define the gaps and technical support for the carbon accreditation of Vietnam’s rice sector. This multi-stakeholder dialogue was also organized to provide a platform for relevant stakeholders to exchange knowledge, information, and experience, contributing to preparing the sector’s readiness to participate in domestic and international carbon markets.

Vietnamese and international experts presented the strategy and roadmap for the development of carbon markets, experiences in engaging and accessing carbon credit schemes, and market modalities for carbon offset markets.

The experts discussed measurement, reporting, and verification (MRV) requirements and tools to support carbon markets and sustainable agriculture transitions in the rice sector and provided insights on the technical needs for developing a comprehensive multi-level (i.e., national, sector, sub-sector, and project levels) MRV system for Vietnam. Digital solutions to provide technical advice and tools for monitoring and reporting GHG emissions were also presented. IRRI prepared a GHG toolkit with more information on tools to support emission reduction projects and MRV innovations.

“Carbon credits have received a lot of attention recently and both the voluntary carbon market and internal carbon trading schemes require regulatory frameworks and standard operating procedures,” said Tran Dai Nghia, director of the Department of Natural Resource and Environmental Economics Studies at IPSARD.

Participants from the government, research, private, and other interested sectors were introduced to various MRV systems, remote sensing/satellite MRV, aggregate data collection models, process-based GHG…