On November 29, in Ho Chi Minh City, the Department of Technical Infrastructure (Ministry of Construction) organized a workshop on "Designing convenient and safe parks for everyone and increasing resilience for Vietnamese cities".

The workshop attracted many representatives of relevant Ministries, Departments and local urban authorities, Associations, businesses, universities, domestic and international research units.

Speaking at the Workshop, Mr. Ta Quang Vinh - Director of the Department of Technical Infrastructure (Ministry of Construction) said that currently the Law on Urban Planning (2009) and Decree No. 64/2010/ND-CP (2010) have many regulations on urban tree management.

However, after nearly 14 years of implementation, many provisions in Decree No. 64/2010/ND-CP have revealed shortcomings and limitations in the practical management of urban trees and parks. Among them, there is a lack of park management regulations and there are no regulations guiding the management and use of urban green tree and park infrastructure assets to specify the regulations on the management and use of infrastructure assets.

Furthermore, the system of parks and green trees in urban areas has not developed commensurate with the urban scale and the needs of urban residents; resources for the development of green trees and urban parks are still inadequate and limited;....

According to the representative of the Department of Technical Infrastructure, the Ministry of Construction is currently in the process of collecting comments on the Draft Decree on management of urban trees and parks, which is built on the basis of closely following the results of summarizing and evaluating the current status of urban tree management.

From there, solve problems arising from practice; reasonably supplement international experience in managing the development of green trees and urban parks. At the same time, have specific policies to mobilize resources to participate in investing in the development of green trees and urban parks. At the same time, contribute to improving the quality of life of people in urban areas.

At the workshop, Architect Dinh Dang Hai, an expert on urban parks, cited the model of Hoi An City planning public spaces in harmony with urban green areas. By 2020, this city had nearly 200 public spaces, averaging 9 square meters per person. In Denmark, Copenhagen City developed a strategy for public spaces for the 2015-2025 period, including many criteria: green roofs, green schoolyards, green streets (withstand heavy rain), green urban areas, green building facades, etc.

This expert believes that in order to achieve the goals of developing urban green trees and parks, it is necessary to have a macro-strategic policy for this field soon. In particular, priority should be given to using public land funds to create more parks and public park spaces.

Giving their opinions at the workshop, many experts, researchers, and local representatives also recognized the role and great value of urban green areas in creating urban identity and serving the interests of the community. Delegates said that the organization, planning, management, development, maintenance, and protection of the current green park system still have many shortcomings and inadequacies.

Therefore, the Ministry of Construction and related ministries need to soon orient the development of standards on urban trees and public parks. From there, complete the draft Decree on management of urban trees and parks.