{"id":10140,"date":"2023-08-27T11:19:19","date_gmt":"2023-08-27T01:19:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/?p=10140"},"modified":"2024-10-21T20:27:53","modified_gmt":"2024-10-21T10:27:53","slug":"australia-vietnam-trade-forests-fuel-climate-energy-push","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/australia-vietnam-trade-forests-fuel-climate-energy-push\/","title":{"rendered":"Australia &amp; Vietnam Trade: Forests Fuel Climate &amp; Energy Push"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Australia is working with Vietnam on &#8220;climate change adaption&#8221; and is committed to a regional &#8220;clean energy transition,&#8221; according to Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Australian Foreign Affairs Minister made the commitments in Hanoi along with a $94.5 million commitment to help with climate change resilience in the Mekong Delta.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The package will help more than one million farmers transition to more climate-resilient and resource-efficient ways of living.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It will help protect forests degraded from severe coastal erosion and land subsidence&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.worldbank.org\/en\/news\/feature\/2021\/10\/21\/for-mekong-delta-farmers-diversification-is-the-key-to-climate-resilience\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">as farmers clear mangrove forests to operate shrimp ponds.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">I announced Australia is investing more than $90 million to support Vietnam&#39;s climate change adaptation efforts in the Mekong Delta.<br><br>We know that one of the greatest risks to regional and global stability is climate change &#8211; and the best way to combat it is by working together.<\/p>&mdash; Senator Penny Wong (@SenatorWong) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/SenatorWong\/status\/1693935444025839761?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">August 22, 2023<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Attending the Australia-Vietnam Foreign Affairs Meeting, which the minister co-hosted with Vietnamese counterpart Bui Thanh Son, she noted that &#8220;Vietnam is important to Australia as a part of ASEAN.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The meetings have been held annually since 2018 and focus on deepening cooperation in trade, digital services, security and, increasingly, climate change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.scmp.com\/economy\/economic-indicators\/article\/3182828\/chinas-worlds-factory-tag-threatened-vietnam-theres\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Increasingly, Vietnam has emerged as an international manufacturing powerhouse,&nbsp;<\/a>with Western Companies looking to decouple from China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Australia has committed to expanding trade and investment and wants to &#8220;work together on the big challenges of our time, which include climate change,&#8221;<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.foreignminister.gov.au\/minister\/penny-wong\/transcript\/press-conference-hanoi-vietnam\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">&nbsp;Minister Wong said at a press conference on Thursday.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The forest sector is essential in driving trade and investment, with its long-term prosperity directly impacted by climate change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Vietnam has invested heavily in afforestation and, in 2021, committed to planting one billion trees in predominantly urban and rural areas over the next five years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"youtube-embed\" data-video_id=\"_GH5H1q1Zsk\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Foreign Minister Penny Wong speaks to 7.30\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/_GH5H1q1Zsk?feature=oembed&#038;enablejsapi=1\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Foreign Minister Penny Wong is in Vietnam, announcing support for the country&#8217;s battle with climate change. Footage courtesy of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@ABCNewsIndepth\">@ABCNewsIndepth.<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h6 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Vietnam PM flags forestry reforms to improve competitiveness<\/h6>\n\n\n\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/vietnam-pm-pushes-major-reforms-to-counter-declining-forest-exports\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">In April,<\/a>&nbsp;Vietnam Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh highlighted the importance of improved competitiveness in processing, post-harvest, and market development to address a decline in forestry exports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Vietnam is looking to revise trade rules,<a href=\"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/vietnam-us-push-for-illegal-logging-agreement-on-furniture\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">&nbsp;crack down on illegal logging<\/a>&nbsp;and create better policies for market growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"620\" height=\"405\" src=\"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/forestry_fishery_export.jpg-1.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-10141\" srcset=\"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/forestry_fishery_export.jpg-1.webp 620w, https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/forestry_fishery_export.jpg-1-600x392.webp 600w, https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/forestry_fishery_export.jpg-1-300x196.webp 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 620px) 100vw, 620px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh speaks at the event (Photo credit: VNA)<br><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>This includes&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/vir.com.vn\/interest-growing-in-high-tech-parks-65598.html\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">high-tech forestry parks that have become a magnet for foreign investment<\/a>, using state-of-the-art technology to&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/ricetoday.irri.org\/opportunities-and-challenges-of-hi-tech-agriculture-in-vietnam\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">improve the forest&#8217;s productivity, production and efficiency.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thestar.com.my\/aseanplus\/aseanplus-news\/2023\/04\/14\/vietnam039s-pm-urges-increased-efforts-to-boost-forestry-fishery-exports\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Vietnam News<\/a>&nbsp;reported that the industry faces several challenges, including increased dependence on imported raw materials, reduced demand and increased competitiveness in significant markets, including the United States, Europe, and Japan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Together, these markets account for 90% of total exports &#8211; with Vietnam now looking to new markets, including Australia, to diversify trade flows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The commitment could be an investment signal, with Vietnam looking to foreign direct investment to modernise its forest products industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Vietnamese forest products export volumes reached US $17.1 billion in 2022, and according to UN data, Vietnam is amongst the largest exporters of wood pellets, veneer sheets, and recovered paper.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"577\" height=\"420\" src=\"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/a-3-064955_568-577x420-1.webp\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-10142\" srcset=\"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/a-3-064955_568-577x420-1.webp 577w, https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/a-3-064955_568-577x420-1-300x218.webp 300w, https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/a-3-064955_568-577x420-1-324x235.webp 324w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 577px) 100vw, 577px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">In December 2021, the Deputy Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Quoc Doanh (first, from left) visited the site planned to construct Vietnam\u2019s first hi-tech Forestry Park in the north-central region. (Photo credit: Viet Khanh.)<br><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h6 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Vietnam is a country with seemingly limitless potential<\/h6>\n\n\n\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/%28https\/\/en.vietnamplus.vn\/vietnams-gdp-growth-forecast-to-rank-second-in-asean\/251654.vnp\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">In a report published by the IMF<\/a>, Vietnam is forecast to be the second best-performed ASEAN economy for 2023 and will replace the Philippines as the best-performed economy in 2024.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Vietnam&#8217;s timber and forest products are exported to over 140 countries and territories, with non-timber-based forest products (including bamboo, rubber, and grass) identified as a significant growth market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"youtube-embed\" data-video_id=\"NhMRsjBNnME\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"The Rising Economy Of Vietnam | Asia&#039;s Next Powerhouse?\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/NhMRsjBNnME?feature=oembed&#038;enablejsapi=1\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Footage courtesy of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@BehindAsia\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">@BehindAsia<\/a>.<br><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.timbertradeportal.com\/en\/viet-nam\/121\/timber-sector\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">According to the Timber Trade Portal,<\/a>&nbsp;just 30 per cent of timber-related exports were the raw material.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Through the 1990s, the Vietnamese government invested heavily in plantation establishment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The 1993 Land Law, for example, drove a surge in plantation forestry. The Act saw millions of households allocated land on lease terms for agriculture and forestry.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Now, small landowners manage more than 42.6% of the 4.39 million hectares of plantation resources &#8211; chipped for wood pallets; Vietnam now supplies 50% of the Asia Pacific hardwood woodchip market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"youtube-embed\" data-video_id=\"j2cWeS8Fdxo\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Communities conserving and benefiting from forest ecosystems: the Vietnam story\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/j2cWeS8Fdxo?feature=oembed&#038;enablejsapi=1\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Footage courtesy of&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@WorldAgroforestry\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">@WorldAgroforestry<\/a><br><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h6 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Vulnerability: 5 to 6 million cubic metres of raw materials imports&nbsp;<\/h6>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite its manufacturing strength, Vietnam relies heavily on imported hardwoods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In April, Wood Central reported that the country imports between 5 to 6 million cubic metres from more than 100 countries to meet its commitments for hardwood furniture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Vietnam is the second largest exporter of furniture in the world, following a period of intense expansion.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Global growth for the sector averaged 2.7% during 2015-2020 to an average annual value of $US68.3 billion, while Vietnam&#8217;s market share increased from 5.8% (2015) to 14.5% (2020).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And whilst Vietnam produces more than 20 million cubic metres of plantation wood, it is rarely used for furniture because plantation timber, such as acacia, is deemed inferior to hardwoods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"680\" height=\"450\" src=\"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/image002-2023-08-27T105146.126.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-10143\" srcset=\"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/image002-2023-08-27T105146.126.jpg 680w, https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/image002-2023-08-27T105146.126-600x397.jpg 600w, https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/image002-2023-08-27T105146.126-300x199.jpg 300w, https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/image002-2023-08-27T105146.126-635x420.jpg 635w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 680px) 100vw, 680px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><em>Acacia plantations dominate the landscape in Vietnam, where thousands of smallholders grow the species on harvest cycles of up to seven years for paper and timber production.<\/em><br><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Not only does this leave the country vulnerable to volatility in the global supply of timber, but it also leaves it at greater risk of &#8216;high-risk&#8217; legality concerns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/news.mongabay.com\/2022\/02\/vietnams-timber-legality-program-not-making-a-dent-in-risky-wood-imports\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">In 2020, US-based Mongabay reported<\/a>&nbsp;that at least one-third of tropical hardwoods imported for Vietnam-manufactured products are from &#8220;high-risk&#8221; locations.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>More than 40% of Vietnam&#8217;s exports end up in US Markets,&nbsp;<a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/vietnam-us-push-for-illegal-logging-agreement-on-furniture\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">with Vietnam and the US working on a new agreement to target illegal logging in the furniture industry.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/worldwide-impact-eu-passes-law-banning-deforestation-products\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">In light of the push by the EU to implement its Deforestation Regulation, the Vietnam delegation<\/a>&nbsp;also committed to boosting cooperation with material timber exporting countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It will amend legal documents to improve monitoring and surveillance of illegal timber and control the seized wood so it doesn&#8217;t enter supply chains.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Australia is working with Vietnam on &#8220;climate change adaption&#8221; and is committed to a regional &#8220;clean energy transition,&#8221; according to Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong. The Australian Foreign Affairs Minister made the commitments in Hanoi along with a $94.5 million commitment to help with climate change resilience in the Mekong Delta.&nbsp; The package will help [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10144,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_wpscppro_dont_share_socialmedia":false,"_wpscppro_custom_social_share_image":0,"_facebook_share_type":"","_twitter_share_type":"","_linkedin_share_type":"","_pinterest_share_type":"","_linkedin_share_type_page":"","_instagram_share_type":"","_medium_share_type":"","_threads_share_type":"","_google_business_share_type":"","_selected_social_profile":[],"_wpsp_enable_custom_social_template":false,"_wpsp_social_scheduling":{"enabled":false,"datetime":null,"platforms":[],"status":"template_only","dateOption":"today","timeOption":"now","customDays":"","customHours":"","customDate":"","customTime":"","schedulingType":"absolute"},"_wpsp_active_default_template":true},"categories":[52,50,46,45],"tags":[],"ppma_author":[69],"class_list":{"0":"post-10140","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-asia","8":"category-australia","9":"category-industry","10":"category-sustainability"},"authors":[{"term_id":69,"user_id":1,"is_guest":0,"slug":"woodcentral","display_name":"Wood Central","avatar_url":{"url":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/MASTER-BRAND-MARK_POS_RGB-e1676449549955.jpg","url2x":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/MASTER-BRAND-MARK_POS_RGB-e1676449549955.jpg"},"0":null,"1":"","2":"","3":"","4":"","5":"","6":"","7":"","8":""}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10140","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10140"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10140\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10146,"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10140\/revisions\/10146"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10144"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10140"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10140"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10140"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/woodcentral.com.au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=10140"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}