(Communicated by the Ministry of Environmental Protection)

A senior delegation from Vietnam's Industry and Trade Ministry, headed by Vice Minister Le Duong Quang, met on June 23 with MoEP representatives to discuss the possibility of cooperation between the two countries on environmental issues. The vice minister also expressed a desire to learn from Israel's experience with environmental policy, legislation, enforcement, and more. The Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade is responsible for ensuring environmental safety in Vietnamese industry. Like other developing countries, however, Vietnam suffers from pollution of land resources, water, and air.

During the meeting, MoEP professionals presented ministry activities in areas that relate to industry, such as air quality, climate change, energy efficiency, chemical management, business licensing (including the Integrated Environmental Licensing Law currently being worked on), and waste and recycling. They also spoke about the National Green Growth Strategy and the ministry's use of economic instruments in environmental protection.

The Vietnamese suggested there could be great potential for cooperation between Israel and Vietnam in the field of technologies for treating solid and industrial waste, and sought to exchange information on cooperation mechanisms with the business sector (using a Public-Private Partnership model). During the visit, which took place at the initiative of the Ministry of Economy, a seminar that included Vietnamese and Israeli business exectuvies  was held.

The delegation included the vice minister and seven of his staff members, as well as 15 representatives from the business sector.