Evolving Environmental Governance Structures in a Market Socialist State: The Case of Vietnam
In response to massive environmental problems as a result of focus on rapid economic development, the environmental governance of the authoritarian one-party state of Vietnam is slowly evolving. The government has improved its environmental institutions a
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Evolving Environmental Governance Structures in a Market Socialist State: The Case of Vietnam Stephan Ortmann
Introduction Environmental protection has become a pressing concern in Vietnamese politics in recent years because most people are faced daily with many apparent environmental problems which have been the consequence of rapid economic development under a weak environmental state. Similar to other developing countries like China, which has also prioritized economic growth in the past, air pollution clogs the cities, often smells badly, and causes unknown numbers of deaths and other health-related issues. Many of the rivers are seriously polluted as large amounts of wastewater are discharged directly into the waterways without any treatment. The growing amount of waste fills unsanitary landfills and is ruining the drinking water and causing serious smells. These downsides of the rapid economic development of the past decades are compounded
S. Ortmann (B) Centre of China Studies, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Sha Tin, Hong Kong e-mail: [email protected] © The Author(s) 2020 A. Hansen et al. (eds.), The Socialist Market Economy in Asia, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-6248-8_7
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by increasingly violent weather as a result of climate change, an issue which is especially pertinent for Vietnam’s low-lying areas. The threats include flooding of coastal areas, salt water destroying farm land, and extreme droughts. The World Bank has declared the country as one of the five most affected countries when it comes to climate change (World Bank 2013). In addition to the increasing visibility of the problem, international pressure and support have also increased significantly. As a consequence, the government has allowed new forms of governance to emerge that reflect changes in the interaction between the state, the market, and the society, which are the focus of this chapter. As Vietnam has abandoned the planned economy in 1986 under Doi Moi (Reformation) and has since shifted toward a more plural marketoriented economy, this has necessitated a transformation of the governmental institutions, which has resulted in more professional, less hierarchical, and more transparent governance structures. There have been efforts to strengthen the capacity of the central as well as local governments. Another outcome has been a rapid increase of NGOs, networks between different actors, and a growing involvement of increasingly powerful industries. Slowly, the hierarchical structures of the government are being opened for greater participation by new political actors, such as local and international non-governmental organizations, who have carved out political space to influence government decisions. Even though environmental policy-making and institution building have made significant progress, the most important part of environmental politics, the implementation of environmental legislation, is still severely lacking. This is due to the fact that the Vietnamese government lacks the capacity to
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