CẦN THƠ — Cần Thơ City People’s Committee has approved a VNĐ15 billion (US$581,000) project to develop a sustainable, low-emission and climate-resilient rice value chain (GoRice) for 2026–29 period.

The project is fully financed by non-refundable cash grants.

It aims to improve the socio-economic and environmental well-being of rice farmers in the Mekong Delta through sustainable and climate-resilient rice production practices, said Trần Chí Hùng, vice chairman of the Cần Thơ City People’s Committee.

A key focus of the project is promoting gender equality and strengthening leadership and decision-making capacity among women and ethnic minority communities in smart agricultural production.

The project will run from September this year to December 2029 in seven Cần Thơ City communes.

Key activities include strengthening the capacity of agricultural extension officers, cooperatives and farmers to adopt climate-smart rice production techniques, while promoting circular economy models and green technologies, including the treatment and reuse of rice straw and husks to improve farmers’ incomes and environmental benefits.

The project will also support producers, with priority given to women and ethnic minorities, in developing entrepreneurship skills, managing household finances and accessing capital, inputs and production tools.

The plan also seeks to raise community awareness of gender equality and enhance stakeholders’ readiness to mobilise resources and support the city’s agriculture and environment sector in developing a long-term, gender-responsive plan for climate-smart rice production.

The city’s Department of Agriculture and Environment has been assigned as the lead agency, with overall responsibility for establishing a GoRice project management board to coordinate, implement and monitor project activities.

The department will work closely with Stichting Oxfam Novib in Vietnam (Oxfam), the Institute of Agricultural Environment (IAE), the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), and relevant departments and local authorities to facilitate technical transfers, measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) of emission reductions, as well as promote market linkages and the consumption of low-emission rice products. — VNA/VNS