Australia and Germany have pledged to provide more than US$23.3 million in non-refundable aid between them to support coastal mangrove protection and climate change adaptation in the Mekong Delta.

The program, worth more than $25 million, is aimed at helping Vietnam to manage coastal ecosystems to mitigate risks and increase the recovery capacity for the Mekong Delta region which is vulnerable to climate change.

The project focuses on transferring experience in policy making and strengthening management of biological diversity, forest and aquaculture and improving the means of subsistence for local citizens. It will be implemented in the Mekong Delta provinces of An Giang, Bac Lieu, Ca Mau, Kien Giang and Soc Trang over three years.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Ha Cong Tuan told a workshop in Hanoi on March 28 that the program was designed in line with Vietnam’s comprehensive growth and poverty reduction strategy until 2020.

The first phase of the project is scheduled to end in October next year.