Scoping Study on Integration of Poverty and Sustainability into National Development Planning

Viet Nam Country Report

Integrated poverty and sustainability into development planning is an approach to enable the formulation of sound sustainability policies. This approach ensures that poverty eradication and environmental sustainability go hand-in-hand with economic growth (UNDP & UNEP, 2013). They require effective governance, policy coordination and coherence across government departments and stakeholders to fully understand and manage the many interactions between economic growth, poverty eradication, and the environment, and ensure policies and plans are designed and implemented in ways that do not progress one dimension at the expense of the other. Over the last decade, efforts have been made in integrating poverty and environmental issues into the national development planning process in Vietnam. The policy direction has moved from focusing on poverty aspects alone, to addressing both poverty and environment together in recent years. A legal framework for mainstreaming sustainable development in socio-economic development plans and sectoral plans has been established by the Decision on the National Action Plan for Sustainable Development for the period 2013-2015 and the related documents.