The Vietnamese delegation at the Human Rights Council session adopting a resolution on climate change and human rights, July 10. (Photo: BC)

On 10 July, the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) adopted its 14th annual resolution on human rights and climate change. Co-sponsored by Bangladesh, the Philippines and Vietnam, Resolution A/HRC/RES/5a6/8 highlighted the growing concerns of Member States about the growing impact of climate change on human rights and fundamental freedoms.

It is no coincidence that three Asian countries have taken the lead in pushing for the resolution. As some of the world’s most vulnerable countries to climate change, Bangladesh, the Philippines and Vietnam have used their positions to highlight the dire consequences of climate change, especially for densely populated coastal areas, including frequent flooding, rising sea levels, saltwater intrusion, forced migration and loss of life and livelihoods.

Ms. Ramla Khalidi, Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Vietnam. (Photo: VL)

Human rights approach

The resolution calls on UN member states to integrate a human rights-based approach, as endorsed in the Paris Agreement, into national laws and policies on climate change.

This year, the co-sponsors of the resolution specifically highlighted the central role of human rights in achieving a just transition.

This focus is particularly meaningful for Vietnam, as in December 2022, Vietnam, together with the International Partnership Group (IPG), announced the Political Declaration establishing the ambitious Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP), which will initially mobilize US$15.5 billion for Vietnam.

The resolution highlights the importance of a just transition for sustainable development, poverty reduction, quality job creation and climate change mitigation.

We recognise that the green transition does not automatically guarantee comprehensive, inclusive and equitable outcomes. A harmonised approach to climate change response and human rights protection, with meaningful participation in the design, implementation and monitoring of climate policies and programmes, is needed to ensure equitable benefits.

Likewise, efforts to promote active learning and education, training for future employment or upskilling opportunities are important, including creating decent jobs, enhancing social protection, reducing inequality and poverty, especially for those most affected by climate change.

To achieve these results, the Resolution calls for a people-centred, gender-sensitive and age- and disability-inclusive approach to climate action, facilitating the participation of communities, socio-political and professional organizations.

The resolution highlights loss and damage, particularly in vulnerable countries, and calls for ambitious post-2025 climate finance targets to support developing countries and protect the most vulnerable communities.

The announcement by the Philippine Government to co-host the Loss and Damage Fund Council meetings with the World Bank is a welcome signal and recognition that global finance needs to be designed to support vulnerable people and those affected by climate change.

The Fund must ensure that reparation regimes are established to build back better using human rights principles. This approach must go beyond humanitarian aid to include preparedness for and prevention of catastrophic loss of life and socio-economic loss.

Ms. Ramla Khalidi - UNDP Resident Representative in Vietnam at the handover ceremony of climate change-resistant ponds to cope with the upcoming dry season in Dak Lak. (Source: UNDP Vietnam)

Act... now

With the climate crisis intensifying, especially in low-lying areas of Vietnam, the time to turn the commitments of Resolution A/HRC/RES/56/8 into concrete actions is now.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is committed to working with the Government and people of Viet Nam to respond to these challenges through human rights-based climate policies and actions.

This includes supporting a just transition based on solid evidence of the socio-economic risks and opportunities of the transition, particularly for vulnerable populations, as well as meaningful public engagement, especially with communities most affected by climate change.

This process involves UNDP working directly with local governments, communities, farmers, women, ethnic minorities, youth, migrants and people with disabilities, who are at the forefront of climate change response at the local level.

Their efforts, both individual and collective, are a prerequisite for a human rights-based approach to climate change mitigation and adaptation that puts people at the centre.

Finally, UNDP aims to support the implementation of Vietnam’s National Action Plan on Responsible Business 2023, avoiding negative impacts on human rights through environmentally sustainable practices.

Together with the Philippines and Bangladesh, Vietnam reminds the international community of the urgency of addressing the nexus between human rights and climate change at the global level, and let us join forces – Governments, communities, socio-political organizations, academia, the private sector and international partners – to make those commitments a reality for current and future generations of Vietnamese people.