[12 February 2012] - Economica Vietnam has been entrusted by the German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GIZ) to implement four baseline studies to monitor achievement of indicators under the Climate Change and Coastal Ecosystems Program (CCCEP) and to provide inputs, information and data for the operation plan of the programme. The four baseline studies will include analysis of social economic situation in the target provinces and districts, preparation of maps, review of policies and implementation of policies and regulations on climate changes and a perception survey in the five province of Kien Giang, Soc Trang, Tra Vinh, An Giang and Bac Lieu. Vietnam was identified by the International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) as one of the countries to be most affected by climate change. In particular the deltas of Mekong and the Red River with their extremely high population density in low laying lands are threatened by sea level rise and the increase in the frequency and intensity of natural disasters such as typhoons, storms and floods.

In the last few years, the Government of Vietnam, AusAID and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through the German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GIZ) have already started to work together in the Mekong Delta. AusAID commissioned GIZ in 2008 with the implementation of a biodiversity conservation project in Kien Giang Province in the Mekong Delta to adapt to and mitigate effects of climate change. Based on the successful tri-partite cooperation in Kien Giang and on the tremendous need for further support in the Mekong Delta on issues of climate change the Government of Vietnam through different provincial authorities and the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI), a Concept Paper “Programmatic engagement in management and rehabilitation of natural resources in the southern Mekong Delta” was submitted by GTZ to AusAID in October 2009, which adhered to the expansion of support in Kien Giang to the Provinces of Ca Mau and An Giang. Further, the concept outlined the strategy to absorb existing GTZ projects in the Provinces of Bac Lieu funded by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) and Soc Trang financed by BMZ to create a Climate Change and Coastal Ecosystems Program (CCCEP) in the region.  
 
The program offers solutions to address the range of problems in the coastal ecosystems.
 
The combination of the components form a CCCEP that is relevant throughout the Mekong Delta and for the development and implementation of a coherent and strategic policy and  legal framework for adaptation to climate change in coastal areas. At provincial level support  is being provided for the sustainable management of coastal zone ecosystems, the piloting of  protection and rehabilitation measures, biodiversity conservation, promotion of sustainable income opportunities, incorporating climate change protection measures into decentralized planning, cooperation between provinces, capacity building and awareness within a province and participatory community development. At national level intersectoral coordination will be improved and mechanisms and capacities for a coherent management of coastal ecosystems regarding adaptation to climate change and poverty alleviation will be built up.
 
The four baseline studies are implemented between February and May 2012 by a multidisciplinary team of  ten experts from Economica Vietnam.