Financing Sustainable Development in Vietnam: Solar and Wind Energy Promotion

This paper examines the state of Vietnam’s renewable energy sector and the potential effectiveness of its current renewable energy policies in terms of its ability to attract international climate finance, particularly with regard to the wind and solar energy sectors. Vietnam has had longstanding problems promoting investment in energy, particularly renewable energy, which has led to worsening air quality, increased dependence on coal and growing concerns that the country may soon face electricity shortages due to increasing energy demand. Despite a push by the Vietnamese government to promote renewable energy policies to address these issues, Vietnam is still not on track to meet Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 7 “Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all” (United Nations, n.d.). Effectively securing climate finance has been identified as key to meeting these goals. The ongoing reform of Vietnam’s solar and wind energy sectors will be analysed in terms of its likely effects on attracting international investment. This paper draws on information from both primary and secondary sources, including statistical data, published studies, newspaper articles and government documents. From this, five policy recommendations will be made to address the shortcomings that have limited investment in Vietnam’s renewable energy sector and electricity market.