Hanoi became the world’s most polluted city according to a ranking by IQ AirVisual on Sunday.

The World Bank Board of Executive Directors on June 5 approved a US$84.4 million IDA credit to support multi-sectoral policy reforms by the Government of Vietnam to promote climate-resilient landscapes and green transport and energy systems.

The air quality of major Vietnamese cities in May was better than in previous months, with a significant improvement in the capital of Hanoi, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has proposed support policies to encourage environmentally-friendly means of transport which run on electric engines and use renewable fuels.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment has proposed launching support policies and preferential programs for the use of vehicles powered by renewable energy to ease air pollution, according to a report the ministry has sent to the PM.

A research work on the presence of phthalates in indoor air in northern provinces has been nominated for the 2020 Ta Quang Buu Award.

Investment in automatic air monitoring systems should be a high priority, Hoang Duong Tung, chair of the Vietnam Clean Air Network, has said.

The social distancing policy has minimized emission activities, improving the air quality in Hanoi. However, the activities in the neighborhoods and surrounding provinces still show certain effects on air quality.

The Department of Environment has announced six locations facing serious pollution in the north.

The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MoNRE) held a teleconference on March 23 to discuss a project on forming a network of air quality monitoring stations in Vietnam.

Feasible solutions were needed to eliminate traditional lime kilns while satisfying national lime demand, the Vietnam Foundry and Metallurgy Science and Technology Association has said.

Participants at a recent conference in Hanoi called for smarter energy choices, given the impacts of coal power generation on air quality and air pollution’s influence on human health.

A discussion in Hanoi on February 25 called for smarter energy choices, given the impacts of coal power generation on air quality and air pollution’s influence on human health.

The conclusion that economic losses caused by air pollution could be up to 5 percent of GDP has raised controversy.

Hanoi will complete a system of 81 air quality monitoring stations by the end of this year, said Director of the municipal Department of Natural Resources and Environment Nguyen Trong Dong on February 5.

The government needs to seek help from the private sector to deal with the pollution problem, experts have urged.

Vietnam has reported high GDP growth rate of 7.02 percent for 2019, which was created mostly by industrial production and the construction and service sectors.

Aquaculture is one of the economic pillars and important livelihoods of the Mekong Delta. However, it is threatened by coal-fired thermopower plants.

Vietnam has been warned that serious air pollution will affect economic growth in the long term, and lead to foreign investment decline.

HCM City has faced severe air pollution over the past week with a high index of PM2.5.