Vietnam is among five beneficiaries from Asia, Africa and Latin America to receive an aid of 18 million USD from the UN-REDD programme to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and generate more jobs for locals. The other countries to benefit from the UN Collaborative Programme on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries (UN-REDD programme) are Congo, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Tanzania.
UN-REDD Policy Department said one-third of the aid is ready for disbursement. UN-REDD is the cooperation of the UN Environmental Programme (UNEP), the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the UN Development Programme (UNDP). The programme was launched by UN General Secretary Ban Ki-moon in September 2008 to cope with climate change through actions against deforestation.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) reported that deforestation has caused an increase of 20 percent in greenhouse gas emissions, a main cause to climate change.
Bolivia, Panama, Paraguay and Zambia have also shown interest in aid from this programme.
