The EU, Vietnam Government representatives, business organizations, academia, and relevant stakeholders met on 20 January 2021 in Ho Chi Minh City. The purpose of the meeting was to exchange views about the implementation of an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) mechanism in Vietnam as introduced by the recent revision of the Law on Environmental Protection (LEP), as well as to discuss international and domestic experiences.
The revised LEP in Vietnam outlines the basic principles of an EPR mechanism, which requires companies to be responsible for collecting and recycling used plastic packaging, in equivalent targeted amounts of what they put on the market. Implementing the EPR can contribute to better management of plastic packaging, to prevent that uncollected and recyclable plastic waste leaks into the ocean as marine litter.
As part of the project, another international workshop was organized by the EU Delegation in collaboration with Saigon New Port Corporation, which aimed to improve ship waste management in Vietnamese ports. Participants at the workshop had exchanges on the existing Ship Waste Handling System in Vietnam aiming at implementing best practices in Cat Lai port following EU experiences.
