Rotterdam and Ho Chi Minh City expand climate change collaboration

Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City and Rotterdam in The Netherlands have signed a new Memorandum of Understanding that will advance co-operation between the two delta cities on climate change adaptation.

The development follows the Vietnamese capital submitting a comprehensive climate change adaptation strategy at a meeting held between the two cities this week.

“The established climate adaptation strategy is the start of a new phase for which Rotterdam has been explicitly requested to continue to play a role, especially when it comes to securing responsibilities and increasing the knowledge of the various government agencies,” said Alexandra van Huffelen, Vice Mayor of Rotterdam. “The cooperation agreement will formalise this.”

The strategy was developed on the basis of six principles and includes permitting construction only where soil and water allow. Tidal locks will play a role, protecting the city centre from flooding, as will adapting houses for flood protection, and building quays and ring dykes. The Vice Mayor told Cities Today that the strategy could easily work as a blueprint for other delta cities “even though the agreement itself was tailor made for Ho Chi Minh City”.

“Rotterdam is a city in which a lot of knowledge in the field of climate adaption has already been and continues to be developed,” van Huffelen added, noting Ho Chi Minh City’s involvement in the international network, Connecting Delta Cities, set up by Rotterdam. “This is done in close collaboration with the business community and knowledge institutes of our region, creating new business opportunities.  The cooperation and support of the consortium is a good example.”

Ho Chi Minh City is a densely populated city and regularly deals with flooding due to heavy rain and a low position in the delta. The problems city residents experience and the risks they face are set to increase as a result of the predicted rising sea levels, increased water discharge from rivers and rising temperatures. At the same time, the city population and economy are growing rapidly.

Vice Mayor van Huffelen, together with Evides Waterbedrijf management, also visited the water company SAWACO and a development project of Water for Life.

The Vietnam Climate Adaptation Partnership includes government bodies and a consortium led by engineering consultancy Grontmij, Witteveen + Bos, Bosch Slabbers landscape architects, Ecorys, Institute for Environmental Studies and the Triple-A team.