Francophone Parliamentary Cooperation Forum adopts Can Tho Declaration

The Francophone parliamentary cooperation forum on sustainable agriculture, food security and climate change held in Can Tho city was a great success with the adoption of the Can Tho Declaration.

Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Nguyen Duc Hai delivered a closing speech at the Francophone Parliamentary Cooperation Forum on Sustainable Agriculture, Food Security and Climate Change. (Photo: Thanh Liem/VNA)

On the afternoon of January 21, after a working day with many exciting activities, the Francophone Parliamentary Cooperation Forum on Sustainable Agriculture, Food Security and Climate Change held in Can Tho city was a great success with the adoption of the Can Tho Declaration.

Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Nguyen Duc Hai, Head of the Organizing Committee of the Conference of the Executive Committee of the Francophone Parliamentary Union (APF), chaired and delivered the closing speech at the Forum. Also attending were Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee Vu Hai Ha, Chairman of the National Assembly's Social Committee and Chairwoman of the Vietnam Subcommittee at APF Nguyen Thuy Anh, and representatives of APF leaders and parliaments of member countries.

The forum attracted the participation of many parliamentarians from the APF Executive Committee and the global Francophone community, senior leaders of the Vietnamese National Assembly, representatives of diplomatic corps and international organizations. Three thematic discussions took place enthusiastically around the topics of sustainable agricultural cooperation, food security and climate change response in the Francophone space.

The Forum's thematic discussions on "Francophone Cooperation in Sustainable Agriculture", "The Francophone Community and Food Security" and "Sharing Experiences in Responding to Climate Change" recorded many opinions, including exchanges and sharing of experiences, as well as many valuable proposals and recommendations on the Forum's theme.

In his closing speech, Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Nguyen Duc Hai emphasized that the discussions reached many common perceptions expressed in the Can Tho Declaration, with the strong determination and commitment of Francophone parliamentarians in promoting sustainable development and addressing global challenges.

The Vice President of the National Assembly proposed that the APF Executive Committee consider adopting a resolution on strengthening Francophone parliamentary cooperation to develop sustainable agriculture to ensure food security and adapt to climate change in the Francophone space; at the same time, APF and APF member sub-committees disseminate the results of the Forum, especially during the upcoming 50th APF General Assembly.

As Vice Chairman of the National Assembly of Vietnam and Head of the Organizing Committee of the APF Executive Committee Conference and the Parliamentary Forum on Francophone Cooperation, Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Nguyen Duc Hai respectfully thanks and highly appreciates the support and effective cooperation of the entire APF Executive Committee, member Sub-committees, parliamentarians, experts, and staff of the APF General Secretariat, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the French Development Agency, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), etc.

Mr. Nguyen Duc Hai also thanked the participation and contributions of the agencies of the Vietnamese National Assembly, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, relevant ministries and branches of Vietnam; and press agencies. The Vice Chairman of the National Assembly especially thanked the government and people of Can Tho city for their dedication and important contributions to the success of the event.

At the Forum, delegates agreed on the importance of the agricultural sector in APF member countries and its links to global challenges. Delegates also emphasized the essential role of parliaments and parliamentarians in formulating policies and promoting multilateral international cooperation for sustainable agricultural development and climate change response; pointing out the close relationship between agriculture and global challenges such as climate change, ecosystem degradation, resource scarcity and social inequality. This requires accelerating the transition to a sustainable agricultural model, strengthening food security and implementing urgent climate change response solutions.

Delegates also called for strengthening multilateral cooperation at all levels, from cooperation between parliaments and governments to North-South, South-South, tripartite, quadrilateral and public-private partnerships. Delegates also stressed the importance of mobilizing the broad participation of the whole society, while prioritizing the protection of vulnerable groups from the impacts of climate change.

Delegates welcomed the initiative of the Vietnamese National Assembly in organizing the Forum and encouraged similar initiatives from other member parliaments. The Forum facilitated information sharing, for parties to discuss, learn from experiences and promote development cooperation to contribute to ensuring the achievement of the goals of ensuring food security, sustainable agricultural development and responding to climate change. At the same time, it emphasized the importance of paying attention to vulnerable groups to climate change in the policy-making process.

The Forum highly appreciated the APF’s issuance and implementation of the Guidelines for Legislative Work on Climate Change. This is considered a useful tool to help parliaments in the Francophone space effectively implement their commitments under the Paris Agreement on climate.

In addition, delegates at the Forum called on the Francophone parliamentary community to step up action and strengthen cooperation to respond to climate change, promote sustainable agriculture and ensure food security. The focus is on perfecting the legal and policy framework in line with international conventions such as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, the Paris Agreement and related agreements, while taking into account the specific conditions of each member country and territory./.

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