92710 CAN THO, VIETNAM Enhancing Urban Resilience JUNE 2014 Note to the Reader C an Tho is a dynamically growing city that faces multiple threats to achieving its development goals— seasonal flooding, sea-level rise, potential land subsidence, and rapid THE RESILIENT CITIES PROGRAM was launched by the World Bank urbanization. In June 2014, Can Tho Group in December 2013 to help cities strengthen their ability to invited a team of specialists from prepare for and adapt to changing conditions, and to withstand and the World Bank Group to implement recover rapidly from disruptions related to climate change, natural the CityStrength Diagnostic in close disasters, and other shocks and stresses. The Program serves as collaboration with local officials, an umbrella for delivering the analysis, rationale, and support local technical staff, and stakeholders. The governments need to make resilience part of their urban management objective of this publication is to share agendas. the findings of the Diagnostic and the priority actions and investments THE CITYSTRENGTH DIAGNOSTIC was developed as a means of agreed with local leaders. engaging with cities on the complex issue of resilience by using a holistic approach to identifying priority actions and investments to Designed to be accessible to a broad audience, this publication presents the most relevant and strengthen urban systems. Designed to be implemented by sectoral actionable information that emerged from the diagnostic process. Although the implementation specialists, the rapid diagnostic process draws upon ideas and data of CityStrength in Can Tho leveraged a substantial collection of studies, research, and plans from a multitude of existing tools. A longer-term goal of CityStrength prepared by multiple development partners, this publication does not go into detail on each. is to promote alignment in approaches to urban resilience to Where applicable, those studies are highlighted within this text and readers are invited to seek improve awareness of resilience considerations among local leaders out the original files for more in-depth information (see Resources on Can Tho at the end of this and development partners. Financial and technical support for the publication). development of the Diagnostic was provided by the Global Facility for CityStrength is an interview-based methodology; as such, a significant portion of the findings Disaster Reduction and Recovery (GFDRR). captured in this publication are based on statements made by local officials and stakeholders during the launch workshop that drew over 90 participants, some 30 individual and group interviews, and field visits. In some cases, especially those that are of a contestable nature, statements are attributed to specific departments or organizations in Can Tho. © 2014 Global Practice on Social, Urban, Rural and Resilience The World Bank Group 1818 H Street NW Washington, DC 20433 USA www.worldbank.org/urban Acknowledgements Mr. Ky Quang Vinh Mr. Huy Nguyen From Can Tho City: Mrs. Bui Le Phi Director, Climate Change Coordination Office Technical staff, Institute for Social and Environmental Director, Department of Health Transition (ISET) Vietnam The World Bank team would like to acknowledge the participation of the Can Tho City government and civil Ms. Thuy Mr. Nguyen Thanh Xuan society in implementing the CityStrength Diagnostic, Deputy Director, Department of Planning and Director, Department of Labour, War Invalids and Investment From The World Bank: including: Social Affairs The World Bank team that undertook the Mr. Le Hung Dung Mr. Nguyen Trung Nhan Ms. Hue implementation of the CityStrength Diagnostic in Can Chairman, Can Tho City People’s Committee Deputy Director, Department of Finance Tho included: Director, Department of Information and Communications Mr. Le Van Tam Ms. Dzung Hoa Thi Hoang Vice Chairman, Can Tho City People’s Committee Mr. Pham the Vinh Deputy Head, Budget Division – Department of Senior Urban Specialist, Task Team Leader Director, Department of Foreign Affairs Finance Mrs. Vo Thi Hong Anh Catherine Lynch Ms. Thao Senior Urban Specialist, CityStrength Coordinator Vice Chairwoman, Can Tho City People’s Committee Mr. Tran Thanh Be Director, Social and Economic Institute Technical Staff, Department of Planning and Investment Stephen Hammer Mr. Nguyen Van Hong Lead Urban Specialist Director, Department of Planning and Investment Mr. Nguyen Ky Nam LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS Director, Institute of Planning and Architecture Hoa Thi Mong Pham Mr. Nguyen Tan Duoc Mr. Vo Hung Dung Senior Social Specialist Director, Department of Construction Mr. Nguyen Khanh Tung Director, Chamber of Commerce and Industry Director, Center of Investment Promotion of Trading Margaret Arnold Mr. Mai Nhu Toan and Tourism Senior Social Specialist Mr. Nguyen Thi Thuong Linh Vice Director, Department of Construction Vice Director, Can Tho Branch of Chamber of Mr. Vo Thanh Hung Van Anh Thi Tran Commerce and Industry Senior Transport Specialist Mr. Nguyen Quang Nghi Head, Export Processing and Industrial Zones Chief of Office, Can Tho City People’s Committee Management Unit Mr. HuynhTien Dung Roger Gorham Chairman, Can Tho Red Cross Association Transport Economist Mrs. Vu Thi Canh Mr. Vo Van Chinh Director, Department of Finance Chairman, Ninh Kieu District People’s Committee Mrs. Phan Thi Hong Nhung Marc Forni Chairwoman, The Women’s Union Senior Disaster Risk Management Specialist Mr. Pham Viet Trung Mr. Le Tam Niem Director, Department of Home Affairs Chairman, Binh Thuy District People’s Committee Mrs. Bui Thi Hong Nga Dzung Huy Nguyen Disaster Risk Management Specialist Founder, Can Tho Association of People with Mr. Pham Van Quynh Mr. Mai Hong Chau Disabilities Chairman, Cai Rang District People’s Committee Pavel Kochanov Director, Department of Agriculture and Rural Senior Municipal Finance Specialist Development Ms. Huynh Ngoc Hong Nhung Mr. Nguyen Hoang Ba Vice President, Can Tho Association of People with James Newman Mr. Nguyen Minh Toai Chairman, Phong Dien District People’s Committee Disabilities Operations Specialist Director, Department of Industry and Trade Mr. Phan Thanh Tien Mr. Ha Thanh Toan Iain Menzies Mr. Tran Viet Phuong Director, Can Tho Port Rector, Can Tho University Senior Water and Sanitation Specialist Director, Department of Culture, Sports and Tourism Mr. Le Van Thong Mr. Nguyen Van Sanh Ifeta Smajic Dragon Institute – Can Tho University Mr. Nguyen Van Su Director, Can Tho Development and Investment Fund Urban Development Consultant Director, Department of Natural Resources and Mr. Le Van Banh Environment Mr. Huynh Thanh Su Astrid Westerlind Wigstrom Director, The Mekong Delta Rice Institute Vice Director, PMU Mekong Delta Region Urban Climate Change Adaptation Consultant Mr. Tran Ngoc Nguyen Upgrading Project Can Tho City Sub-project Mr. Stephen Tyler Sheena Yoon Director, Department of Science and Technology Senior Advisor, Institute for Social and Environmental Mr. Le Van Tien Information Designer Transition (ISET) Vietnam Mr. Lu Thanh Dong Director, PMU Can Tho Urban Upgrading Director, Department of Transport Letter from the Chairman Can Tho is the engine of growth of the Mekong Delta. With a concentration of industries, educational institutions, health facilities, and science and technology research organizations, we are poised to achieve our 2020 goal of becoming a modern city that contributes to the development of Vietnam and growth of the South East Asia region. Given this important role, we need to ensure that we address the threats to our future success. We need to take proactive measures to deal with recurrent flooding, the pressures of rapid urbanization, and the anticipated impacts of climate change to ensure that we reap the benefits of economic growth in a safe, sustainable, and inclusive way. In short, we need to become more resilient. Becoming more resilient will require strengthened urban management capacity and better coordination and sharing of information across departments. And it will also require continued investment in urban infrastructure like flood protection, transport, and sanitation. This will be a long-term journey, and the implementation of the World Bank’s CityStrength Diagnostic represents just one milestone. We are inviting the World Bank and other development organizations to join us in a long-term partnership to strengthen Can Tho and make it an even better place to live, work, and enjoy the natural beauty of the Mekong Delta. Mr. Le Hung Dung Chairman, Can Tho City People’s Committee TABLE OF CONTENTS Executive Summary 8-11 What is a Resilient City? 12-15 CityStrength Diagnostic Methodology 16-17 About Can Tho City 18-25 Key Challenges in Can Tho 26-27 Findings of the CityStrength Diagnostic 28-67 Urban Planning and Development 30-35 Municipal Finance 36-39 Disaster Risk Management and Climate 40-45 Community and Social Protection 46-51 Energy 52-55 Transportation 56- 61 Water and Sanitation 62-67 Priority Actions and Investments 68-73 Immediate Measures 74-75 Resources on Can Tho 76-79 Executive Summary C ities are vulnerable to many types of shocks and stresses, including natural hazards like storms and sea level rise, but also man-made Tho, efforts to promote greater resilience must be closely aligned with its long-term goals of economic growth and modernization. Priority Actions Strengthen institutional capacity and legislative frameworks for an effective integrated flood ones like economic transformation and rapid risk management approach. Resilience is not To identify the bundle of actions and investments urbanization. These shocks and stresses have solely about the physical strength ­ of protective needed to enhance resilience in Can Tho, the the potential to bring city systems to a halt and infrastructure in a city; it also requires capacity to World Bank team used the new CityStrength reverse years of socio-economic development ensure its smooth delivery and operation. There Diagnostic Methodology, a qualitative, rapid gains. Cities that are to grow and thrive in the is an urgent need to strengthen the institutional diagnostic process that uses a combination future must take steps to address these shocks capacity of city authorities to ensure that effective of guided interviews, exercises, and review of and stresses. Simply put, a resilient city is one that coordination across various city departments existing studies to determine sectoral and cross- can adapt to these types of changing conditions and ministries and Mekong Delta provinces is put cutting recommendations. As the first pilot of and withstand shocks while still providing in place, adequate structural and non-structural the methodology, lessons learned with the Can essential services to its residents. A resilient city measures for flood risk management are fully Tho experience will inform the future use of can keep moving toward its long-term goals integrated in the city’s urban planning processes, CityStrength in Vietnam and around the world. despite the challenges it meets along the way. the operation and maintenance of the city flood The residents of Can Tho are familiar with How can Can Tho Become More control and drainage systems is consolidated, and challenges—the city is dealing with chronic Resilient? an effective mechanism for citizen participation in seasonal flooding, periodic flood disasters, flood risk management is established. Can Tho has an opportunity to address the riverbank erosion, saltwater intrusion, possible two primary threats to its socio-economic Enhance the collection, sharing, and use of data land subsidence, economic transition, and development goals—flooding and uncontrolled on public assets, buildings, population, and risks. rapid urbanization. The city is also aware of urbanization—by more proactively guiding urban Data is the foundation of effective resilience challenges that lay on the horizon like sea level growth to areas with lower flood risk, including the planning. This data is needed as the basis for rise, a labor force that is unprepared for high- higher elevation areas near the heart of the city. planning growth in the city, and especially for technology industry, and an urban population Institutional- and policy-related changes need to the creation of detailed area plans. Beyond use that expects high-quality urban infrastructure and be coupled with investments in flood prevention for urban planning initiatives, the collection and services from its government. These challenges and protection, transport to improve connectivity sharing of information on the physical aspects are interlinked—encroachment on canals and in the city center, sanitation, and urban of the city and hazard incidence is important for riverbeds increases flood risk, while flooding and upgrading targeting poor and vulnerable groups. transport planning (which should be closely linked rampant growth impacts the safety and quality of Transportation systems, for example are usually with land use plans), public asset management, life in urban areas. viewed narrowly for their ability to efficiently quantifying damages and losses due to flooding, move goods and people. In the case of Can Tho, and local budgeting. In June 2014, a team of specialists from the World however, it is clear that transport decisions and Bank Group worked with stakeholders in Can Tho Improve the analysis of climate impacts in Can investments are inextricably linked to the long- to identify the priority actions and investments Tho by introducing standardized damage and term economic and physical resilience of the city. that will enhance the city’s resilience to these loss assessment procedures that will enable local This is the most important and “no regret” flood current and future challenges. They explored officials to quantify the impact of flooding on prevention measure Can Tho can take. options to transform planned or aspirational the local economy and budget. Hazard events projects into initiatives that will also enhance the As a collection of initiatives, implemented by Can potentially represent a significant explicit and city’s resilience. As the socio-economic engine Tho with more effectively coordinated support implicit contingent liability of the government that of the Mekong Delta, Can Tho plays multiple from development partners, the following actions is shouldered by a broad range of line items in the important roles in promoting the well-being of its and investments could have a transformational annual budget, as well as unseen lost economic residents and the regional population. For Can impact on the resilience of the city. activity. Can Tho has established a reserve fund 8 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 9 for unplanned contingencies; but additional Use transport investments to guide urban growth income areas and improving the drainage system analysis of the city’s financial management, to higher elevation areas and meet the needs in the city. These activities should be scaled up including growth of the reserve fund over time, of a modernizing city. Transport plays a major to include the remaining canals in the urban core and the city’s full contingent liabilities are required role in inducing and guiding urbanization, and that have not been addressed. Moreover, there is to determine the adequacy of these measures for transport investments in Can Tho should be an opportunity to promote social inclusion and the city’s risk profile. used to strengthen the role of the urban core long-term sustainability of the improvements as the locus of development and growth. With through a more participatory approach with local Strengthen financial management to enhance this objective in mind, priority investments in communities, including ethnic minorities. the sustainability of infrastructure investments the transport sector could include: (i) a second and strengthen capital investment planning to bridge crossing at Quang Trung; (ii) upgrading facilitate better prioritization, monitoring, and and selective provision of new roads in the urban achievement of economic development goals. core, especially those that encourage a public Resilient cities have a strong financial foundation transport spine like Tran Hoang Na; and (iii) that supports planning and investment activities. strengthening of waterway transport, subject to A greater focus on the results of budget the recommendations of a logistics study. allocations, rather than just the money spent, could improve the efficiency of expenditures and Invest in sanitation to protect public health and the quality of outcomes. Currently, the capital support the economic base of the city. The new investment planning process in Can Tho takes Can Tho City Sanitation Plan focuses on urban place on an annual basis during the normal budget drainage, wastewater collection and treatment, preparation. The criteria for selection include and solid waste management activities, as well socioeconomic benefits, but there is also an as providing direction and guidance to improve opportunity to integrate resilience considerations environmental conditions in rural areas, industrial into the decision-making process while also zones, handicraft villages, and medical institutions. improving the transparency of resource allocation. Immediate attention should be given to resolving the temporary solid waste disposal situation at Priority Investments multiple sites in Can Tho due to the high risk that Focus on implementing flood protection measures leachate from the solid waste will contaminate in the urban core to make it a more attractive adjacent agricultural fields. Moreover, efforts and safe place to live and do business. The Flood should be taken to leverage the investment made Control Master Plan for the period 2013-2020 in the new KfW-funded wastewater treatment developed by the Ministry of Agriculture and facility by promoting private investment in Rural Development and approved by the Prime household connections to the sewer. Unless Minister in 2012 presents a solid foundation for individual buildings are connected to the sewer taking targeted action, especially in regard to system, the treatment facility contributes little to the proposed investments identified for Phases 1 thwarting environmental degradation in the city. and 2 of the Plan. Specifically, Phase 1 focuses on Continue to focus on urban upgrading as a means the urbanized area of Ninh Kieu and includes a of addressing encroachment on drainage canals ring dike, tidal sluice gate, pumping station, and and targeting support to poor and vulnerable improvements to the sewer and drainage system. groups in the city. Addressing encroachment on Phase 2 focuses on Binh Thuy (northwest) and canals and riverbeds remains a priority, especially includes extension of the dike along the Hau River in the urban core. Over the last decade, Can to the north and a new dike to protect rural areas. Tho has made great progress in upgrading low- 10 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 12 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE WHAT IS A RESILIENT CITY? A resilient city can adapt to a variety of changing conditions and withstand shocks while still providing can also have a deep and lasting impact on human development. Disaster losses are often linked with, or exacerbated by, poverty essential services to its residents. and vulnerability of the poor that stem from socio-economic and environmental With most of the global population and imbalances. capital goods concentrated in urban areas, cities are key to social development and Cities are complex systems; and, like all economic prosperity. They are drivers of systems, a city depends on the smooth national economic growth and innovation functioning of its constituent elements and and act as cultural and creative centers. But the larger organization in which it is nested. urbanization also brings challenges. With a A city’s resilience is therefore affected by greater concentration of people, assets, and the resilience of those smaller and larger infrastructure in urban areas, an increasingly systems. Disruptions to the basic services complex range of shocks and stresses can they provide can have cascading impacts put in jeopardy human wellbeing and hard- well beyond the city itself. The complexity won development gains. of cities also makes resilience building especially challenging. Focusing on one Natural disasters like storms, droughts, and policy goal, such as climate protection, earthquakes are not the only risks that cities without considering others can lead to face. Cities are also vulnerable to economic undesirable outcomes. These decisions may downturns, crime and violence, public health come as explicit trade-offs, unintended epidemics, and even infrastructure failure. consequences, or some combination of These shocks can have devastating effects, the two. Building a resilient city therefore bringing some or all of an urban system to a requires a holistic, multi-sectoral, and flexible halt, and possibly causing asset damage and approach to urban development. loss of life. Acute shocks and chronic stresses ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 13 Characteristics of Resilience Robustness Coordination Robustness deals with the strength of the system, its reliability, Coordination between systems and agencies means that and its ability to absorb and withstand disturbances. An knowledge is shared, planning is collaborative and strategic, important aspect of robustness is proper operations and and responses are integrated for mutual benefit. maintenance to ensure that systems are functioning properly. Diversity Diversity means that services can be supplied in a number of ways, including using distributed resources or multifunctional equipment, with different exposures to hazards. If one service Reflectiveness channel gets disrupted, another can be used. Spatial diversity – Resilient urban systems examine, learn, and evolve based distributing assets across a city, or even beyond the city – may on their past experiences and new information. Managing help ensure they are not all affected by a single geographical resilience requires regular assessment of the performance of event such as a flood. systems and adjustment to changing circumstances. Inclusiveness Redundancy Consultation and engagement with a wide range of Redundancy means that there are provisions for spare stakeholders, including the most vulnerable groups, ensures capacity or back-up systems that enable continuity of service that systems are more resilient by considering a wider range or functionality in the event of a disturbance or increase in of vulnerabilities, risk management capacities, and localized demand. information. Equity in access to infrastructure and services underpins social cohesion and opportunity. 14 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 15 CityStrength Stage One PRE-DIAGNOSTIC DATA COLLECTION Diagnostic The first stage focuses on collecting information and leveraging efforts that have already been undertaken Methodology in the city. A review of all relevant studies, reports, or plans developed by the city, the World Bank, or other development partners is conducted. Who prepared it? Why? And how was it used? Key finding are summarized in order to brief participants during the launch workshop as well as external specialists supporting the implementation of the Diagnostic. Specific background studies or data collection initiatives could also be undertaken during this stage depending on the context. The CityStrength Diagnostic methodology Stage Two LAUNCH WORKSHOP facilitates a dialogue among stakeholders about risks in their city and the performance of urban The second stage is a launch workshop. The objectives of the workshop are to inform all participants systems. It helps identify priority actions or about planned activities, put the interests and priorities of different stakeholders into a holistic framework investments that will enhance the city’s resilience of urban resilience, demonstrate commitment by high-level government officials so that technical staff are as well as transform planned or aspirational fully engaged throughout the Diagnostic, and get confirmation on the city’s priority areas. projects into projects that will also help to build resilience. CityStrength stresses a holistic and integrated approach and encourages cross- Stage Three INTERVIEWS AND FIELD VISITS sectoral collaborations to more efficiently tackle existing issues and to unlock opportunities within The third stage consists of interviews and field visits to help the external specialists better understand the the city. challenges and opportunities in the city and to qualitatively measure how well key systems are performing in relation to the characteristics of resilience. It is also meant to give the city departments the opportunity To cover topics within the city and metropolitan to learn about each other’s work programs and ongoing resilience activities. CityStrength has been area purview, CityStrength Diagnostic modules designed with a modular structure so that it can be tailored to each city, targeting issues that are identified include Community and Social Protection, as priorities during the pre-diagnostic review and discussions with local government. Disaster Risk Management, Education, Energy, Environment, Health, Information and Stage Four PRIORITIZATION Communications Technology, Local Economy, Logistics, Municipal Finance, Sanitation and Solid The fourth stage is the prioritization of actions and investments to enhance resilience in the city. This is Waste, Transport, Urban Development, and Water. done using multiple “lenses” to qualitatively identify measures that the participating specialists recommend These modules were created based on a review as the most important for the city leaders to consider. While the ultimate goal of the CityStrength of about 40 tools and methodologies related to Diagnostic is to enhance the city’s long-term resilience, it is important to understand the nature of any resilience and the analysis of over 600 indicators immediate threats or vulnerabilities (Lens 1). It is also crucial to better comprehend the direct and indirect contained within them. effects (Lens 2) of shocks and stresses in the city by examining interdependencies across key infrastructure systems and services. This aids in identifying measures that could be taken in one system that will deter The CityStrength Diagnostic consists of 5 stages, problems in another. Identifying cross-cutting issues (Lens 3) can help to give priority to measures that book-ended by leadership commitment for maximize co-benefits. In Can Tho, the City Resilience Framework, developed by Arup International through resilience on the front-end and a longer-term a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation, was used for this purpose. Finally, aligning recommended actions engagement with development partners through and investments with local goals and objectives (Lens 4) increases the likelihood that the recommendations financing or technical assistance at the back-end. have sufficient stakeholder support to become a reality. Stage Five DEBRIEFING AND DISCUSSION The fifth stage is a meeting with local leadership to present the findings of the Diagnostic, share recommendations, and agree on priorities and next steps. After agreeing on priorities and next steps, the team of specialists prepares a brief publication highlighting the findings of the CityStrength Diagnostic that can be used by the local government to facilitate communication with a broad set of internal and external stakeholders. ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 17 About Can Tho City areas such as climate resilience, disaster risk management, transport, water and sanitation, With a population of 1.25 million, Can Tho is and broader urban development. (Many of the largest city in the Mekong Delta and the these studies and reports are listed at the end fourth largest city in Vietnam. Can Tho City of this report). has been classified since 2009 as a first-class city, which is under the direct management Can Tho has taken important steps toward of the central government. Geographically, tackling present challenges by leveraging Can Tho holds a key position in Vietnam and external support and local initiatives. To in the wider Mekong Delta Region — a region coordinate and mainstream climate change that has huge economic potential but at the issues across departments, for example, same time is highly vulnerable to a number of a Climate Change Coordination Office CAN THO shocks and stresses. (CCCO) was established directly under the Can Tho City People’s Committee (CPC) Can Tho City plays a major role in the socio- with support from the Asian Cities Climate economic development of the Mekong Delta Change Resilience Network.1 Can Tho has Region. The Can Tho development goals for also established a Steering Committee for 2020 and 2030 envision further expanding this Flood and Storm Control (SCFSC) to lead and role. The city promotes the economy, culture, coordinate the implementation of a city-level science, and technology for the entire region. action plan to implement the 2007 National CITY In the last ten years, Can Tho has shifted its Strategy for Natural Disaster Prevention, economic focus from traditional agriculture Mitigation, Preparedness, Emergency to industry, trade, services, tourism, and agro- Response, and Recovery to 2020. To respond businesses. Can Tho is projected to become to the needs of a changing economy, 62 the regional hub for high-tech agro-industrial vocational training centers have been production and aquaculture, food processing, established to assist the existing workforce and export, thereby becoming a major actor in transitioning into the new labor market. in promoting food security in the Mekong The encroachment of informal settlements Delta. Also a national and international traffic on drainage canals in the center city is being hub, Can Tho has an important function in the addressed, and local capacity for urban regional transportation system supporting upgrading is being strengthened (World Bank, regional connectivity as well as hosting crucial 2009). And, the completion of the Can Tho infrastructures benefitting the entire region Bridge and the international airport in 2011 such as telecommunications and power and represents a significant step in enhancing Can water networks. Tho’s connectivity to the rest of the country Because of Can Tho’s important role in the and the world. Mekong Delta Region and the significant flooding challenges it faces, the city has been the focus of numerous studies, reports 1 The Rockefeller Foundation supports a number of climate change management mechanisms and priority actions and activities carried out by both national in the region through the Asian Cities Climate Change and international agencies targeting key Resilience Network and ISET-International. ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 19 Can Tho’s Socio-economic Development Plan 2020 and new Master Plan articulate a vision for the city’s future: • Be a civilized and modern city known for its rivers • Be the economic-social, educational- training, science and technology, medical, cultural, and sports center of the Mekong Delta • Be the industrial center of the region, including high-tech industry, energy, engineering and electronics, processed agricultural and fishery products • Be an important link in regional and transnational transport • Contribute to the socio-economic development of the country and growth of the South East Asia region • Create a comprehensive, balanced, and sustainable city • Ensure national security and defense 20 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 21 QUICK FACTS CAN THO PROVINCE MAP BASIC SERVICES Access to Population Electricity 1.25 million 98% (2005) 7 Urban Access Population to Piped Growth Rate Water 9.7% 3 62% (2005) 7 Rural Land Area Access to 1,390 km2 Piped Water 80% (2005) 7 Urban Access to 66% (2011) 2 Piped Sewers only residents in Ninh Kieu Sources: district 8 2 canthopromotion.vn 3 Vietnam Statistical Office 4 World Bank (2013c) Solid Waste 5 cantho.gov.vn 6 Can Tho City CPC (2014) Collection 7 NIURP (2007) only urban 8 cantho.gov.vn 9 Can Tho City CPC (2010) core LOCAL ECONOMY CLIMATE Average Annual Average Land Predicted Sea Poverty Rate Unemployment GDP Growth Rainfall Elevation Level Rise 11.7% (2013) 4 Rate 11.67% (2013) 6 1,600-2,000 mm 0.8 - 1 m 1m by 2100 4.7% (2011) 5 above sea level in the East Sea 9 URBANIZATION TOPOGRAPHY AND FLOODING Adapted from Mai Thy, P. T. et al (2010) Land Elevation Maximum Annual Urban Land Water Level Expansion Rate 2% >2m Before 2001 1.79 m Maximum Density 29% 24.3% 7,000 people/km2 1-2m After 2001 1.90 m 22.6% in Ninh Kieu 69% 8.1% <1m During 2011 2.15 m Floods Source: SCE 2013 Source: SCE 2013 Key Challenges Flooding and uncontrolled urbanization are the high tides is a chronic stress that the city has observation during field visit). there is a lack of clarity between the two entities two main threats to the resilience of Can Tho, learned to cope with and considers a “way of life”. in terms of responsibilities and mandate; it is Data collection and sharing is needed to improve and they are closely linked. Encroachment by Technical staff in Can Tho have high capacity and difficult to effectively draw together initiatives the quality and responsiveness of physical low-income households on canals and river beds a desire to shift the paradigm from coping with from the many city line departments or at higher and financial planning in Can Tho. Information increases flood risk, while flooding and rampant flooding to reducing flooding and its associated levels of government into a collective action plan related to urban growth, public assets, and flood growth impacts the safety, value, and quality of risks. However, they are not able to quantify the for Can Tho. There is also a need for improved events is not collected on a systematic basis, life in urban areas. In addition, chronic flooding full impact of the problem. Although many risk coordination in operating the city’s drainage and nor is the data saved in a digital format that may undermine confidence in the urban core assessments have been conducted in Can Tho, flood control systems, which is partly managed would facilitate analysis for decision-making (primarily Ninh Kieu) as a viable location for living the impacts of flooding on the local economy and by the Department of Transport (DOT) and and sharing across departments. For example, a and doing business. household income are not well understood. Unlike in part by the Department of Agriculture and census of structures is carried out on a regular acute shock events that generate high levels of Rural Development (DARD). Each sector largely Land subsidence is a potential threat to Can basis, but it is not geographically referenced. This damage, seasonal flooding primarily generates continues to plan and implement activities Tho’s long-term resilience, a challenge that limits the utility of this information in tracking other types of economic losses related to independently (interview with CCCO). This requires further study. A recent study sponsored urban growth and monitoring development in business discontinuity, delays in the transport of represents a missed opportunity to seize upon by the Dutch Government to support a Mekong environmentally sensitive areas. Moreover, many goods, inaccessibility to jobs, and indirect health cross-cutting issues that could enhance Can Tho’s Delta Plan showed that land subsidence due to of the detailed neighborhood plans that provide impacts. Quantifying both damages and losses resilience. Moreover, as evidenced by the many sustained, long-term drainage and groundwater guidance on infrastructure development are can help Can Tho to better articulate the impacts studies, plans, and technical assistance activities extraction is occurring in the region. Can Tho paper-based, which also makes the city’s process from flooding, to prioritize and demonstrate the in Can Tho, donor agencies are bringing support authorities strongly believe that land subsidence and enforcement of construction permitting need for protective infrastructure investments, to the city. Some of this support, however, is also threatening their city and, combined with less transparent and effective (interview with and to understand the potential impact these fails to build upon existing bodies of work or sea-level rise, could lead to worsened seasonal DOC). With regard to current and future flood events could have on local finances. are not sufficiently connected to downstream flooding. The relationship among water supply, risk, a sophisticated flood model (based on Mike implementation processes, resulting in an groundwater extraction, land subsidence, and Uncontrolled urbanization, coupled with 11, a diverse, river modeling package) has been inefficient use of human and financial resources. flood protection is not well understood in Can insufficient sanitation infrastructure, presents a developed for the Mekong Basin, including Can Tho. growing risk of environmental degradation and Tho. There is also a fairly precise, digitalized, adverse health impacts. A combined storm water elevation model available. All simulation results The poor are especially vulnerable to natural and sewer system, lack of wastewater treatment, and maps are contained in a project atlas and hazards and changing economic conditions. and direct discharge of household sewage into are available in Geographic Information System Living by canals in poorly constructed housing, rivers and canals facilitate the circulation of (GIS) format (SCE, 2013). However, the extent to the urban poor are disproportionally exposed human waste through the streets and into homes which this risk information has been integrated to flooding, storms, and other harsh weather during re-current flooding events. This has direct into infrastructure planning and budgeting taking impacts. Moreover, the elderly, children, disabled health impact, especially for extremely low- place in city line departments is limited. people and other vulnerable groups are at higher income households that also source their drinking risk due to limited access to protective public A lack of coordination among departments, and bathing water from polluted waterways services. The poor in Can Tho tend to depend other government entities, and donor agencies (Moglia et al, 2013). Moreover, temporary, unlined on rice and fish for sustenance and as a source may be limiting the effectiveness of resilience- landfills in the city present an imminent threat of employment. As the city shifts away from a building efforts. Multidisciplinary issues like to adjacent agricultural fields when it rains traditional agricultural base toward a high-tech climate change, disaster risk reduction or or floods. These sanitation issues could have agriculture and modern export industry, there is emergency response require coordination across significant indirect impacts on the economic a looming mismatch between the labor force and multiple government departments and areas attractiveness of the city, especially for agro- skills required for new industries. of expertise. For this precise reason, Can Tho industries, as leachate (runoff) from a landfill established the Climate Change Coordination The impacts of flooding in Can Tho are being could contaminate crops grown on adjacent fields Office (CCCO) and the Steering Committee for underestimated. Flooding from heavy rains and with dangerous chemical compounds (specialist Flood and Storm Control (SCFSC). However, 26 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 27 During the CityStrength Diagnostic process, sectoral specialists developed a snapshot of the performance of urban systems in Can Tho in relation to the characteristics of resilience. Better understanding of the strengths and weaknesses within each of the systems served as an input to the overall prioritization process. The following pages provide an overview of the key resilience characteristics for each sector in Can Tho. Urban Planning and Development Pg. 30 Municipal Finance Pg. 36 Disaster Risk Management and Climate Change Adaptation Pg. 40 Community and Social Protection Pg. 46 Energy Pg. 52 Transportation FINDINGS OF THE Pg. 56 CITYSTRENGTH DIAGNOSTIC Water and Sanitation Pg. 62 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 29 30 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 31 URBAN PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT In a resilient city, physical and socio-economic planning processes are In Can Tho, rapid urbanization, in combination with seasonal flooding, presents well-coordinated, inclusive, and cross-sectoral. Key stakeholders are a key challenge to urban development (ISET, 2010; Huong and Pathirana, 2013). involved to align plans with sector priorities and to ensure that the The city is unable to respond fast enough to a rapidly growing population and interests of all societal groups are taken into consideration. Coordination lags behind in providing basic services to its residents, especially those living in between departments and other agencies enables the use of existing less-urbanized areas (Moglia et al., 2012). Knowledge about the speed and nature of urbanization is limited due to a lack of data on informal growth (interview knowledge and data across the city to better understand current and with DOLISA). Encroachment on canals and riverbeds is threatening the city’s future vulnerabilities. Urban planning and development ensures a holistic ecosystem by clogging its natural drainage mechanisms and is posing additional and long-term approach to urban growth, factoring in potential shocks health hazards to populations that are already vulnerable to flooding and canal/ and stresses and encouraging proactive mitigation measures. riverbank erosion (Challenge to Change et al., 2009). The city is gradually re- settling informal populations from the exposed areas and is proactively directing urban growth into lower-risk zones (interview with CPC; Can Tho Master Plan, 2013). Can Tho has a transparent and inclusive urban planning process in place that includes formal consultations with different levels of government, expert groups, and local communities (interview with DOC). The city’s overall development vision is supported in the city’s spatial plans as evidenced by the alignment of Can Tho’s Socio-economic Development Plan 2020 with the new Master Plan 2030. Coordination and knowledge sharing between departments is somewhat weak as evidenced by limited reflection on each other’s programs and activities in sectoral plans. DEVELOPMENT PARTNER ACTIVITIES: Primary Time Type Title Sponsor Partners Government Period Counterpart National City Development Institute for Strategy Ministry of Strategy for Can Cities Alliance Urban and 2012 Document Construction Tho Rural Planning; World Bank Mekong Delta Can Tho City Infrastructure Approved Region Urban World Bank People’s Project 2012 Upgrading Project Committee Vietnam Urban Can Tho City Infrastructure Upgrading Approved World Bank People’s Project Project Additional 2009 Committee Financing Can Tho City Infrastructure Vietnam Urban Approved World Bank People’s Project Upgrading Project 2004 Committee ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 33 URBAN PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT Resilience Characteristics Robustness The city’s building codes cover multiple types of assets and reflect flood risk to some degree. All projects are required to adhere to these codes in order to receive building permits. However, a challenge in Can Tho is the large presence of Coordination dilapidated houses that are not built according to code (Carrard In Can Tho, the socio-economic development vision is successfully et al., 2012). In addition, uncontrolled urbanization is posing a integrated into the city’s spatial strategy. Sectoral plans are threat to the city’s ecosystem and to people’s health as a result consequently developed in line with the general framework laid of untreated wastewater discharge (interview with DONRE; Loan, out in the Master Plan (interview with DOC). However, there is 2010). Urban upgrading activities aimed at improving the living limited coordination among the various sector-specific plans. conditions of informal settlers and simultaneously improving the Efficient implementation of the Master Plan would require more city’s ecosystem by clearing natural drainage canals are ongoing explicit delegation of responsibilities and stronger participation but insufficient in coverage (interview with CPC). for line departments in the preparation of detailed area plans (SCE, 2013). Reflectiveness The city monitors changes in natural hazards and is trying to direct urban growth into lower-risk areas (interview with DONRE). Although the city is aware of the environmental and human safety risks associated with informal growth along roads and canals and in peri-urban areas, there is no formal strategy for accommodating future in-migration of lower- income groups elsewhere in the city. Moreover, the collection of data on the building stock and public assets are not digitized or geo-referenced (interview with DOC), making it difficult to measure urbanization trends as well as damages and losses Inclusiveness caused by flooding and other hazards. Can Tho has established transparent and predictable procedures for consultation on urban plans. Planning processes generally include a number of platforms for communicating the draft plan and receiving feedback from the public (interview with DOC). Informal groups, however, are systematically overlooked in the Redundancy city’s socio-economic and spatial planning by being excluded in Given that the city’s actual rate of population growth is unknown population estimates that lay the foundation of such planning. (interview with DOLISA), it is difficult to evaluate whether land designated to urban development will meet future demand. It appears that there is insufficient supply of affordable formal housing as demonstrated by the presence of informal settlements along the city’s waterways and roads (field observations). Lack of service coverage to all segments of the population indicates that Can Tho is unable to absorb the rapidly growing population (Moglia et al., 2012; interviews with DOT and DOC). 34 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 35 36 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 37 MUNICIPAL FINANCE A resilient municipal finance system is able to withstand large-scale Can Tho has relatively diversified own-source revenue generation. Nonetheless, shocks to revenues or unforeseen needed expenditures through the city’s ability to control its revenues and plan for its expenditures is limited reserving and flexible budget reallocation mechanisms. Budget planning, given that the central government appears to require given percentages or levels management, and policy-making are based on actual performance data, of the city’s operating budget be spent on specific sectoral areas (interview with including information on damage and loss from previous shocks or DOF). There is also a gap between the priorities of its five-year master plan and the budget allocation. This is coupled with weak, medium-term, financial and stresses. A resilient city has a municipal finance system that has sufficient strategic budget planning. Although the current level of budget provisioning and autonomy to manage its resources and coordinates across departments to reserving appears to cover annual losses from flooding as established from past ensure spending leads to results for the city’s priorities. It creates a stable experiences, more severe disaster events, which could occur infrequently and and informed investment environment that allows for the involvement of outside the scope of historical analysis, could challenge the city’s stand-alone diverse actors and supports an inclusive approach to budgeting, ensuring fiscal profile. that the allocation of city resources reflects community priorities. MUNICIPAL FINANCE Resilience Characteristics Robustness For the last ten years, own-source revenues appear to be rising in line with GDP and population growth (10-year budget data provided by DOF). Also, given that Can Tho appears to be a net-revenue contributor to the central government, it seems Reflectiveness unlikely that the current debt will become unaffordable. The The city’s structure of expenditures is straightforward, but officials city’s current provisioning and reserving is able to cover recent from the Department of Finance (DOF) and Department of losses experienced from annual flooding. However, in the event Planning and Investment (DPI) have difficulty considering future of a severe disaster, Can Tho could suffer from decreased tax trends in resource availability or different agencies’ operating and revenues and increased expenditures needed for recovery. The capital needs, beyond what is required by national mandates. city’s assets are not covered by insurance (SCE, 2013), and This reduces the general ability and incentive for city officials additional development in Vietnam’s insurance market would likely to engage in a thoughtful, scenario-based, multi-year planning be required in order for appropriate and well-priced coverage to process. become available to the city. In addition, Can Tho has a limited As noted in the DRM/CCA section, Can Tho is not able to collect ability to financially and strategically plan for the medium to long or use clear information on its contingent liabilities resulting term as its financial decision-making is currently based on one- from disaster and climate risks. While the city uses its annual year budgeting. contingency budget to soften shocks and stresses, city agencies appear to use a substantial portion of their annual budgets toward coping and repairing small-scale damage, which is not well captured. More broadly, there is a gap between the priorities laid out in the city’s five-year master plan and the amount of financial resources available and allocated to them. In addition, the municipal finance system, including budgeting processes, does not appear to draw on performance-based principles, making it difficult for the city to cost-effectively maintain and manage public-owned assets. Redundancy Per national requirement, the city has a reserve fund and puts aside 3-5 percent of annual recurrent expenditures for unplanned contingencies. The annual contingency line item is drawn down frequently, but the reserve fund has never been used (interviews with DOF and DPI). It can only be utilized upon approval of the People’s Committee and carries other restrictions on its use, potentially weakening the city’s capacity to act quickly and effectively in the event of serious shocks and emergencies. 38 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 39 DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT AND CLIMATE A resilient city has a disaster risk management system that combines Flooding in Can Tho is a result of rainfall and poor drainage in combination with a a well-functioning and inclusive disaster preparedness and emergency high tide and river level. Land subsidence, if occurring in the city, may exacerbate response mechanism with effective disaster prevention infrastructure. the seasonal flooding problem (SCE, 2013). In the past, Can Tho has also suffered Such a mechanism and infrastructure is based on an integrated citywide from riverbank erosion, salt intrusion, and typhoon (very uncommon). To address risk assessment and is developed to prepare for, limit, and recover from disaster risks and climate change impacts, Can Tho has formulated a number of legislative frameworks, policies, and action plans, including a city-level action expected natural hazards. In a resilient city disaster risk management is plan for implementing the National Strategy for Natural Disaster Preparedness, integrated in all city-planning processes, including master land use, socio- Prevention, Mitigation, Emergency Response, and Recovery to 2020 and the economic, and sectoral plans. A resilient city bases its decisions for budget Can Tho City Climate Change Resilience Plan 2010-2015 (Can Tho CPC, 2010). allocation and investment prioritization on information that includes In addition to these action plans, the World Bank supported an integrated flood experienced and expected damages and losses from disaster events. risk management plan (SCE, 2013) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural DEVELOPMENT PARTNER ACTIVITIES Primary Type Title Sponsor Partners Government Time Counterpart Developing and Centre for 2012 – Development (MARD) has prepared a flood control system master plan for the city. Implementing Real- Environment and Technical 2014 time Salinity Monitoring, ACCCRN ISET Natural Resources In general, flood risk in Can Tho is well understood and several risk assessments Assistance Dissemination and Response Monitoring of Can have been conducted, albeit by external agencies (e.g., Challenge to Change et al., Mechanisms Tho City; CCCO 2009; World Bank, 2012). Integrated Flood Risk Strategy Can Tho City Management Plan for Can World Bank SCE 2013 In addition to these action plans, the World Bank supported an integrated flood Document People’s Committee Tho risk management plan (SCE, 2013) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) has prepared a flood control system master plan for the city. Mekong Delta Plan: long- Royal Haskoning, In general, flood risk in Can Tho is well understood and several risk assessments Strategy term vision and strategy Government of the Wageningen MONRE, MARD 2013 have been conducted, albeit by external agencies (e.g., Challenge to Change et al., Document for a safe, prosperous and Netherlands University, Deltares sustainable delta 2009; World Bank, 2012). Climate Change Impact and There is a well-functioning institutional structure in place for disaster emergency Technical Adaptation Study for the USAID ICEM, DAI 2013 preparedness and response, including an early warning system under the guidance Assistance Lower Mekong Basin and supervision of the Steering Committee for Flood and Storm Control (SCFSC) under DARD. However, risk reduction infrastructure is delivered and maintained Climate Change Impact and ADB, AusAID , Technical Adaptation Study in the Climate Change MONRE 2010-2012 by multiple actors—DARD, Department of Natural Resources and Environment Assistance Mekong Delta Fund (DONRE), Department of Construction (DOC), and DOT—who are not well coordinated. DOT is in charge of the piped drainage system and part of the open Technical Climate Change Resilience 2010 - ACCCRN ISET Can Tho CPC canal system in the city while DARD manages all the open canals in agricultural Assistance Coordination Office 2012 areas and the flood control system. DONRE is responsible for water resource management. And, DOC administers the building codes for drainage systems and Strengthening institutional Red Cross and capacity for Disaster Risk building permits for buildings and infrastructure that may impact underground Technical Hanoi Water Management in Viet Nam, UNDP MARD; Can Tho CPC 2008-2011 drainage pipes. These three aspects of the city’s flood control system are not Assistance Resources including climate change- University managed in a consolidated manner (SCE, 2013). related disasters Can Tho has put substantial effort into improving and upgrading the city flood ISET, CTC, World Climate Change Resilience control and drainage systems, including levees, tidal sluicegates, sewer systems, and Strategy Bank, MONRE, Action Plan of Can Tho City, ACCCRN SCCC and DONRE 2010 Document NISTPASS, SIWRR, canal dredging (SCE, 2013). However, the fragmented nature of the investments and 2010 – 2015 CTU financial resource constraints have resulted in a flood protection system that has proven inadequate for addressing the flood challenge (interviews with CCCO, DARD, CTC, The Dragon Hazard, Capacity & and SCFSC). Moreover, slow onset flooding has become a way of life in Can Tho and Technical Insitute, The Vulnerability Assessment in ACCCRN DONRE 2009 Assistance Mekong Rice is generally not perceived as a disaster event (SCE, 2013). As such, attention has not relation to Climate Change Institute, CTU been put on quantifying the damage and loss that this seasonal flooding causes. This is needed in order to inform budget planning and to prioritize infrastructure Strategy Local Resilience Action Plan World Bank; GFDRR Can Tho CPC 2009 projects. Can Tho needs to move from a flood response approach to a proactive, Document integrated, and multi-sectoral approach to disaster risk management. Can Tho City Steering World Bank (SCCC Technical Committee on Climate established as part Can Tho CPC 2009 Assistance Change (SCCC) of MOU with Bank) ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 43 DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT AND CLIMATE Resilience Characteristics Coordination The institutional set-up for disaster risk management and climate change adaptation is complex, with overlapping roles and responsibilities. There Robustness are two entities with a mandate to coordinate and mainstream flooding issues—the Climate Change Coordination Office (CCCO) and the Steering The flood events in 2011 and 2012 demonstrated that existing flood Committee for Flood and Storm Control (SCFSC)—and there are three infrastructure, including the retaining walls and concrete quays in the departments involved in the design, operation, and maintenance of the urban districts, are inadequate to deal with the seasonal flood challenge drainage and flood control systems. Specifically, the DOT manages the in Can Tho. In terms of emergency preparedness, there is an early warning piped drainage system and part of the open canal system in the city. system providing timely information through local media channels. DARD (under which the SCFSC is located) manages open canals with an agricultural drainage purpose as well as the flood control system, including dikes and tidal gates. DONRE is responsible for water resource management. And, DOC is responsible for issuing building codes for drainage systems without managing and operating them. There is a need to consider these structures as part of one flood management with one Reflectiveness consolidated operations and maintenance procedure. Physical and financial damage assessments are carried out after disaster Legislation and planning for flood risk management is also somewhat events to inform decision-making (SCE, 2013). However, the expected uncoordinated. For example, Can Tho has an action plan for the financial losses from flood events are not systematically accounted for implementation of the national DRM strategy as well as a climate change and are, therefore, largely underestimated. This has led to insufficient adaptation (CCA) plan. Portions of the latter, especially in regard to climate knowledge about costs of past events, lack of direct budget allocation change adaptation, overlap in an inconsistent way with the existing DRM for risk reduction activities, and no understanding of the contingent action plan. Similarly, the DOC provides standards for designing the budget liability associated with disaster loss. drainage system without coordinating with DARD standards for designing the flood control system (SCE, 2013). Coordination among the provinces of the Mekong Delta Region is also extremely important. Encroachment taking place in the upstream provinces has caused the flooding problem in Can Tho to become more severe (interview with ISET). Moreover, while coordination during planning Redundancy is needed, the execution of the plan in a coordinated manner is equally A climate-shocks emergency preparedness plan is available and important. The central government should play a key role in providing updated annually. This city plan is consolidated from the departments, clear guidance and incentives to ensure that all ministerial and provincial districts and major state companies emergency plans. Flood prevention development plans in the Mekong Delta are developed and implemented measures are limited to elevated roads and pavements that act as local in a collaborative and coordinated manner. dikes, small soil levees along drainage and irrigation systems, and a few retaining walls and concrete quays in the central districts. Current flood protection systems have little spare capacity to deal with changing or worst-case scenario floods. The existing dike system has limited capacity in preventing inundation of the urban core and is currently focusing on dike rings to support winter rice crops (SCE, 2013). The current road Inclusiveness embankments are not sufficient to prevent inundation of the urban core. Decisions concerning investments and budget allocations for major As part of a large urban upgrading project in the city center, several infrastructure development are taken at the national level, thereby clogged canals have been cleaned and reopened for drainage purposes potentially excluding local agencies from influencing the priorities for (World Bank, 2009). Most of them have been designed in a low-level, disaster risk financing. Stakeholders, including communities and partners, flood mitigation standards. Additional flood prevention measures, such were not fully consulted on most of the city investments for flood as tidal sluice gates, are lacking (SCE, 2013). Green structure solutions control and drainage systems since the investment plans are developed such as temporary urban storage areas, pervious pavements, and sectorally. Locally, there are no financial mechanisms for sharing risks infiltration trenches could be an opportunity for the city. such as insurance companies (SCE, 2013). 44 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 45 46 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 47 COMMUNITY AND SOCIAL PROTECTION In a resilient city, residents, including vulnerable groups, are given equal Most people in Can Tho have access to basic services such as electricity, and fair access to basic services. Support structures, such as safety net schooling, and healthcare (Can Tho CPC, 2014). The main challenge is unequal programs, target all vulnerable segments of the society and effectively access to safe water and sanitation services (Moglia et al., 2013). Poverty levels deliver their services under any given scenario. All residents have equal are moderate and annually decreasing (Carrard et al., 2012), although the extent opportunity to engage in the formal economy and have sufficient capacity to which migrant workers and informal settlement residents are captured in these statistics is uncertain (interview with DOLISA). The largest ethnic group, the to deal with and bounce back from shocks and stresses. Decision-making Khmer, has a poverty rate three times higher than that of the Kinh people. While and planning is inclusive and reflects community priorities and needs. A the poor live in the most vulnerable areas, poor households do not prioritize resilient city creates opportunities for a thriving civil society that supports disaster risk as they have more pressing, basic problems related to health and the fair representation of society. livelihoods. A government decree on grassroots democracy has meant that information about development plans is adequately disseminated to communities (interview with DOLISA). However, meaningful community engagement in high- level decision-making is still lacking, as exemplified by the absence of community participation in citywide planning (interview with DOC). Communities are fairly well organized for disaster preparedness and response at the commune level but could be more engaged on aspects of risk identification and risk reduction. Women fully participate in the formal economy and hold decision-making positions, both in the workplace and in the household (interviews with DOH and DOLISA). DEVELOPMENT PARTNER ACTIVITIES Government Counterpart or Time Type Title Sponsor Partners Implementation Period Agency Strengthening Preventive Health Technical Dengue Fever 2012 – ACCCRN ISET-Vietnam Center of Can Tho Assistance Surveillance and 2014 City Response System Provincial/City Vietnam Youth Youth Union; Technical Challenge to 2011 – Urban Resilience ACCCRN Climate Change Assistance Change 2013 Competition Coordination Office Global Network Survey on of Civil Society Study Perception of Risks GFDRR CCCO 2011 for Disaster Risk in Can Tho City Reduction Centre for Natural Resources and The Social Environmental Dimensions of Studies (CRES); Study Adaptation to World Bank Vietnam National 2010 Climate Change in University; Vietnam Dragon Institute; Challenge to Change ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 49 COMMUNITY AND SOCIAL PROTECTION Resilience Characteristics Coordination Several city departments are responsible for managing a fragmented set of safety net programs, including the Department of Labor, War Invalids, and Social Affairs (DOLISA) for poverty reduction, Committee for Ethnic minorities for Robustness social inclusion, and Department of Agriculture and Rural Can Tho has a diverse set of safety net programs that cover Development for livelihood support to farmers. However, there needs of groups such as ethnic minorities, the poor, the elderly, is limited coordination between these programs (interviews orphans and the disabled. The programs focus on poverty with DOH, DOLISA and DARD). reduction and disaster reconstruction and compensation. Yet, despite the numerous safety net programs, poor populations continue to be disproportionally affected by natural hazards through damages to housing and loss of livelihoods. In addition, rapid urbanization is negatively impacting the urban poor due to lack of basic services and increasing exposure to Inclusiveness environmental pollution (Challenge to Change et al., 2009). Can Tho is inclusive in its provision to some basic services, including electricity, schooling, and healthcare, but struggles with providing universal access to safe water and sanitation services, especially among the poor. With a higher poverty rate, ethnic minorities are a high-priority target group for poverty reduction safety net programs (interview with DOLISA). Different community groups are represented by mass organizations such as the Women’s Reflectiveness Union, People with Disabilities’ Association, and Farmers’ Affected communities have learned from previous stresses and Association. have, over time, developed several disaster risk management Communities are also included in disaster preparedness strategies. These include shifting their livelihoods from activities and response planning, and receive emergency agriculture to aquaculture and elevating roads to reduce response training by organizations such as the Red Cross mobility disruptions during the flood season (field observations (interviews with civil society and DPC representatives). and interviews with PC representatives of rural districts). However, communities are less involved in the design of The city’s poverty reduction strategies are informed by citywide risk reduction strategies (interviews with CCCO regular monitoring of poverty trends (interview with DOLISA). and DARD). The existing disaster risk management (DRM) However, it is uncertain to what extent the city’s poverty data plans, for example, were developed without consulting with adequately reflect the presence and conditions of migrant communities, including those living along the canals. The active participation of families, local authorities, and local groups and informal settlements. communities in risk assessments, design of works, and implementation and monitoring of activities can help reduce the impact of seasonal flooding as well as future climate impacts. When disaster preparedness and mitigation works are not options, the feasibility of preventative resettlement depends on the active participation of communities at risk. 50 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 51 52 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 53 ENERGY A resilient energy system offers a secure supply of power that ensures Planning for and management of energy issues are done at the national level, the continuity of services in the event of disruptions. It has spare capacity limiting the participation of Can Tho stakeholders. The diverse national energy to provide power to the city under any circumstances, especially to portfolio provides the city with several alternatives for supplying electricity. ensure continuity to the functioning of critical infrastructure like hospitals Within Can Tho there are two diesel-fired power plants currently used as and government buildings. The planning for and design of energy “peakers” that can supply electricity to critical infrastructure, such as government buildings and hospitals, during shortfalls and outages. For additional electricity infrastructure is informed by an integrated risk assessment taking major generation, the construction of a gas power plant is under way in Can Tho. When shocks and stresses into consideration. A resilient energy system provides completed, the O Mon Power Centre, supported by the ADB and KfW, could result access to electricity to all societal groups. Management of the energy in the city exporting power to the entire Mekong Delta Region (JICA, 2012; SCE, system, including decisions regarding distribution and pricing, is inclusive 2013). The flood risk in Can Tho appears to have informed prevention measures of local departments and stakeholders. for the energy sector such as providing concrete poles for distribution wires and elevating transformers (field visit to Unit 1 of O Mon 1 Plant). ENERGY Resilience Characteristics Robustness Vietnam has a diverse energy portfolio, including hydro, coal, gas, and oil, providing the city with several alternatives for its electricity supply. Independent, back-up generation capacity has Coordination been installed in hospitals. The energy supply could potentially be subject to disruption from Chinese imports or from the reduction Can Tho has limited influence over energy planning since in hydropower during droughts. However, Can Tho’s fuel supply these decisions, including importing, generation, transmission, is relatively robust since the city is a major fuel distribution site. distribution, allocation and retailing, are centrally coordinated by In addition, once a new natural gas line delivering gas to the city the state-owned energy company (interview with CPC). is completed, the two existing power stations will come online full-time with two additional plants scheduled to be constructed, which could result in the city exporting power to the entire Mekong Delta Region. The probability of price shock is relatively low since energy prices are tightly controlled. Load shedding does occur during emergencies and during energy shortfalls, but there is currently no demand-response market to formally integrate load shedding into the supply market. Redundancy Can Tho is primarily reliant on imported power from other provinces as well as from neighboring countries. However, the city’s two diesel-fired power stations, that are normally only Reflectiveness used as “peaker” plants, do have sufficient generation capacity The flood risk in Can Tho appears to have informed the design to meet the majority of city demand should the imported power of local energy facilities such as providing concrete poles for be disrupted. Key facilities including hospitals are prioritized to distribution wires and elevating transformers (field observations). receive power during such shortfalls (interviews with DPI). In addition, most existing power stations are located at slightly higher elevations and there is reportedly guidance and building codes calling for the elevation of electric outlets and equipment in buildings (interview with DOC). 54 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 55 56 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 57 TRANSPORTATION A resilient transport system offers multiple modes of transport to its In Can Tho, transportation planning is integrated into the city’s urban planning users to ensure the continuity of mobility in the event of disruptions practices (interview with DOC). Although the city has proactively assessed and to ensure access to transportation for all population groups. It takes transport investments based on flood risks (interview with DOT), it is unclear a flexible approach and proactive coordination with other agencies to whether the effectiveness of investments has been evaluated according to be able to divert user traffic to different modes of transport based on the city’s key priorities. Moreover, the link between transport investment and city development patterns is not fully taken into consideration. Transport changing conditions. In a resilient city, the planning for and investments in infrastructure is predominantly dependent on roads, rendering the transport the transport sector are based on holistic risk assessments and are closely sector vulnerable to disruptions caused by seasonal flooding. Can Tho has no aligned with other departmental plans and overall key priorities of the alternative strategy for commuting or logistics during the flood season. city. Upgrading of roads has taken place across Can Tho to tackle the flood risk by elevating roads and implementing built-in drainage systems; however, this has been limited to national and provincial roads (SCE, 2013). Can Tho has a monoculture of motorcycles that is posing a threat to air quality and impairs the mobility of certain vulnerable groups (field observations and interview with AOPD). To this end there are plans to further strengthen the existing public bus transport system (interview with DOT). The waterways are currently underutilized and could play a bigger role for goods and passenger traffic. DEVELOPMENT PARTNER ACTIVITIES: Primary Time Type Title Sponsor Partners Government Period Counterpart Central Mekong ADB; AusAID; Infrastructure Delta Region Ministry of Approved Export-Import Bank Project Connectivity Transport 2013 of Korea Project Trung Luong-My Viet Nam Technical Thuan Can Tho ADB Expressway Proposed Assistance Expressway Corporation Infrastructure Ministry of Can Tho Bridge JICA 2010 Project Transport 58 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 59 TRANSPORTATION Resilience Characteristics Robustness Coordination Can Tho has not made strategic investments in mobility and Can Tho demonstrates a well-functioning and flexible logistics to realize the full potential of the road and waterway cooperation between the Ministry of Transport and the systems and thereby better withstand seasonal pressures. Department of Transport for the planning and management of The city is proactively responding to traffic changes by transport infrastructure. Transportation planning is integrated strengthening its bus-based, public transportation network; into the city’s urban planning practices as confirmed by the although, the current public transportation operates at a city’s coherent master plan. financial loss for the city. Transportation infrastructure is primarily financed by the city with no mechanism for road cost-recovery, with the national government only providing capital for national transport assets and matters of national policy network (interview with DOT). Diversity Reflectiveness The observed transport mode is predominantly made Transportation investments are based on lessons from up of motorcycles. However, there are plans to diversify previous flooding impacts and expected flooding mobility options by further strengthening bus-based public levels (interview with DOT). Although Can Tho has transportation. Waterways are generally under-utilized. River proactively assessed transport investments based on transport is used for some goods and raw materials whereas flooding risks, it is unclear whether the effectiveness of public transportation is limited to ferries for river crossing these investments has been evaluated according to key (interview with DOT). priorities for the city. Redundancy There is a lack of an alternative strategy for commuting and freight transportation during the flood season. With the Inclusiveness majority of roads under water during flooding events and with The dominant use of motorcycle transport limits the mobility a transport infrastructure almost entirely dependent on roads, of certain vulnerable population groups such as the elderly and it severely impairs the mobility of both freight and passengers. physically disabled (interview with CPC and AOPD). However, However, key roads are being elevated to improve accessibility the bus-based public transport system is substantially throughout the year (SCE, 2013; interview with DOT). subsidized, which benefits the poor and immobile. 60 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 61 62 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 63 WATER AND SANITATION A resilient sanitation system provides inclusive access to sanitation Until recently, Can Tho lacked a coordinating body for sanitation activities, services. It takes a holistic planning approach that takes social, economic, resulting in limited cross-departmental collaboration; the City Environmental and environmental risks and vulnerabilities into account. Planning for Sanitation Coordinating Committee was established to serve this purpose and investment in the sanitation system is driven by demand and supply and implement the City Sanitation Development Plan (Can Tho CPC, 2013). data, and is based on cross-departmental collaborations that support Poor financial management of sanitation infrastructure in combination with insufficient capital investments (interviews with DPI and DOC), which mainly coordination with existing urban development plans and priorities. In a comes from the state budget, has led to a lack of financial sustainability for resilient city there is sufficient human and technical capacity to ensure the sanitation sector. This has resulted in the under-development of sanitation sustainable operation, maintenance and financial management of sanitation infrastructure systems including drainage, wastewater collection and treatment, infrastructure and services. and solid waste disposal (Can Tho CPC, 2013). There is no treatment of domestic or industrial wastewater, for example, and facilities for domestic and medical solid waste management are limited (interview with DOH; SCE, 2013); “a large number of industries and households are known to release wastewater directly into waterways” (Neumann et al., 2013). The first wastewater treatment plant in Can Tho is being constructed. It is expected to be completed in 2014 and will have a 30,000 cubic-meter per day capacity. There appears to be a lack of technical and managerial capacity related to overall management, planning, and operations and maintenance of sanitation infrastructure (Moglia et al., 2013). The current state of sanitation causes serious damages to peoples’ health and impacts the economy through, for example, lost navigational functions of the waterways and reduced quality and output of aquaculture products. Can Tho has recently approved a City Sanitation Development Plan under the proposed national Unified Sanitation Sector Strategy and Action Plan (Can Tho CPC, 2013). DEVELOPMENT PARTNER ACTIVITIES: Primary Time Type Title Sponsor Partners Government Period Counterpart Capacity Building for the Management, Water and Planning and Can Tho CPC/ Technical Sanitation Coordination of the City Sanitation 2014-2016 Assistance Program; World Sanitation Sector at Committee Bank Subnational Level in Vietnam Infrastructure Water Supply JICA Pipeline Project Improvement Program Sewerage and Infrastructure 2008- Wastewater Disposal KfW GIZ Project 2014 Project Wastewater and Solid Technical Ministry of 2005- Waste Management in GIZ Assistance Construction 2014 Provincial Centers AKIZ Vietnamese- German German Joint Federal Ministry of Technical Research Program on Ministry of 2010- KfW Science and Assistance Integrated Wastewater Education 2014 Technology Concept for Industrial and Zones (IZ Tra Noc) Research Poverty Dimensions of Can Tho Water Technical Water, Sanitation And CSIRO; Supply and AusAID 2012 Assistance Climate Vulnerability CTU Sewerage in Can Tho City Company Cost-effectiveness Analysis as a Technical Methodology to AusAID 2010 Assistance Compare Sanitation Options in Peri-urban Can Tho, Vietnam ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 65 WATER AND SANITATION Resilience Characteristics Coordination The City Environmental Sanitation Coordinating Committee has only recently been established to coordinate sanitation activities within the city government. In addition, the Robustness relationship between the government and the existing utilities Lack of implementation of sanitation regulations; lack of appears to be weak. With the recently approved City Sanitation treatment facilitates; and poor management, including Development Plan, the DOC in collaboration with DPI and operations and maintenance of existing facilities, has meant DOF will now play a leading role in coordinating sanitation that many industries and households release wastewater infrastructure and services (Can Tho CPC, 2013). directly into waterways. In addition, there is no treatment of industrial waste, and solid waste management facilities have limited capacity (interview with DOH; SCE, 2013). Projects focused on drainage and wastewater treatment are encountering difficulties in attracting investment funds. Poor Diversity financial management of sanitation infrastructure has led to With limited access to sanitation services and generally a lack of financial sustainability due to the existing system inadequate sanitation infrastructure, there are few alternatives of low-cost recovery and setting of low caps on sanitation available other than to discharge untreated wastewater directly charges/fees. into the river and canal systems (Moglia et al., 2013). The first wastewater treatment plant in Can Tho is being constructed, with an expected completion in 2014 and a 30,000 cubic- meter-per-day capacity (interview with CPC). Can Tho does not have a sanitary landfill. Waste is currently collected and brought to several small, temporary landfills where it is buried (visit to landfill sites; interview with DOC). Reflectiveness There is limited consideration of how the lack of sanitation infrastructure and management affects both public health, with regard to water-borne diseases for example; and economic prospects, with regard to the marketability of agricultural products for example. There is also a limited understanding Inclusiveness about the linkages between inadequate sanitation, flooding, There is no participation of civil society and user groups under and associated social and environmental impacts. the current sanitation management arrangements (Can Tho CPC, 2013). There is a need to expand the sanitation services to include all districts and end users in Can Tho, including informal settlers. Currently, solid waste collection is only provided in urban districts. Households and commercial users are charged a fixed fee for the service. The new wastewater treatment facility will only serve the Ninh Kieu district (interviews with DOC and CPC). 66 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 67 Priority Actions and Investments T here is an opportunity to address the two primary threats in Can Tho—flooding and uncontrolled urbanization—by more proactively more efficient use of resources. Priority Actions management, and the Department of Natural Resources and Environment is in charge of water resources management. This complex aspects of the city and hazard incidence is important for transport planning (which should be closely linked with land use plans), public guiding urban growth to areas with lower flood Better manage urban growth and direct it institutional set-up makes it challenging to asset management, quantifying damages and risk, including the higher elevation areas near the toward higher elevation areas. This is the most effectively plan for and implement flood risk losses due to flooding, and local budgeting. urban core. This approach is well aligned with the important and “no regret” flood prevention management interventions in Can Tho. The new In terms of technology, a priority action includes recently approved Master Plan (Can Tho CPC, measure Can Tho can take. This can be DRM Law, adopted by the National Assembly in establishing a GIS-based system to facilitate 2013), especially its objective of creating a more accomplished by taking proactive measures June 2013, stipulates that a single agency should updating and sharing of data. The ability to consolidated urban area. to incentivize or induce growth in the urban be responsible for drainage, sewage, and flood flexibly update and change plans based on new core through needed investments in transport, control. Flood risk management also requires Enhancing resilience requires actions and information is a key characteristic of resilience. sanitation, and urban upgrading as well as close coordination with Mekong Delta provinces, investments that are oriented toward preventing Moreover, the process for collecting data is an targeted flood protection infrastructure. There particularly the upstream provinces of An flooding and strengthening the city center. opportunity to enhance inclusiveness, another is still ample development capacity in Ninh Giang, Dong Thap, Kien Giang, and Vinh Long. The identified actions refer to institutional and characteristic of resilient city development. With Kieu, Binh Thuy, and Cai Rang to accommodate Therefore, there is an urgent need to strengthen policy-related changes, whereas the proposed this in mind, the collection of the physical data projected population growth. As part of this the institutional capacity of city authorities to investments refer to infrastructure-related points and mapping could be done in partnership urban development, it will be paramount to ensure that (a) an effective coordination across development. Recommended actions need to be with Can Tho University and other partners both continue current urban upgrading efforts various city departments and ministries and coupled with investments in flood prevention and through the Open Data for Resilience Initiative and also proactively create space for lower- Mekong Delta provinces is put in place; (b) protection, transport to improve connectivity in (OpenDRI), which works with governments to income groups in order to reduce future risk of adequate interventions, including structural the city center, sanitation, and urban upgrading collate existing data using open source software. informality in peri-urban areas and on canals. and non-structural measures for the flood risk targeting poor and vulnerable groups. As a The World Bank has created OpenDRI and Retroactive measures to address encroachment management and climate resilience, are fully collection of initiatives, implemented by Can similar platforms in Bangladesh, Haiti, Indonesia, and sprawl are far more financially and socially integrated in the city’s urban planning processes; Tho with more effectively coordinated support Nepal, and Sri Lanka. OpenDRI can also promote costly than taking proactive actions to include (c) a consolidated operation and maintenance from development partners, these actions and social inclusion by engaging local communities the poor in future development plans. Improved of the city flood control and drainage systems is investments could have a transformational to collect data and build maps that describe urban growth management in Can Tho will implemented; and (d) an effective mechanism for impact on the resilience of the city. the exposure of the built environment and require capacity building as well as upgraded citizen participation in flood risk management is the vulnerability of different groups to natural The successful execution of the recommended technology and software systems. It will established. hazards and other risks. The CCCO could act bundle of actions and investments requires also require significant coordination among Enhance the collection, sharing, and use of data as a possible home for risk-related databases. significant coordination among departments departments outside the DOC. on public assets, buildings, population, and risks. It is worth considering how these efforts can and stakeholders in Can Tho as well as between Enhance institutional capacity and legislative This data is needed as the basis for planning be harmonized with other efforts by the city to Can Tho and higher levels of government. frameworks for an effective integrated flood growth in the city, and especially for the creation improve the documentation of public assets. Some departments, such as transport, appear risk management approach. There is currently of detailed area plans. The recently approved to have a cooperative relationship with the Create standardized damage and loss an overlap between the Committee for Flood Master Plan outlines the general growth respective ministry, while other departments assessment procedures that will enable local and Storm Control (CFSC) and the Climate trajectory and major land uses for the city, but do not. Success also necessitates improved officials to quantify the impact of flooding on Change Coordination Office (CCCO). In addition, detailed area plans provide the level of specificity coordination among donor agencies and other the local economy and budget. Hazard events a number of city agencies are involved in the needed for actual infrastructure design and international organizations that are active in potentially represent a significant explicit and operation and management of flood-related construction, as well as the issuance of building the city. This is due both to the significant scale implicit contingent liability to the government, infrastructure—the Department of Transport permits. Currently, only about 50 percent of the of resources needed, and to the linkages and which is shouldered by a variety of line items is responsible for urban water drainage and city has completed detailed area plans. This is in interdependencies inherent in building a resilient in the annual budget as well as unseen lost wastewater interventions, the Department of part due to a lack of input information. Beyond city. Focusing the collective efforts of Can Tho economic activity. According to the DOF, after Agriculture and Rural Development is in-charge use for urban planning initiatives, the collection government and development partners in a a disaster, Can Tho may be responsible for of flood control and agricultural drainage and sharing of information on the physical strategic way can facilitate better results and paying farmers compensation for lost crops, 68 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 69 providing compensation to repair damages, and ten years from 2004-2013, the city usually makes Delta (and possibly in Lao PDR and Cambodia) The local government would like to reinforce performing infrastructure repairs, among other cuts to capital investment, road maintenance, must be well understood. The river basin approach Can Tho’s role as the hub of food processing and expenses – all of which may draw on different or other maintenance expenses. This practice could provide both the central government and export for the Mekong Delta Region. To this end, parts of the budget and are not captured clearly appears reasonable in the face of other short- the provinces with a better and more effective conducting a study of logistics within Can Tho year to year. Per national regulation, Can Tho term budget choices and priorities, but could planning tool in managing water resources and and the surrounding region is suggested prior sets aside approximately 3-5 percent of recurrent pose a threat to the robustness of new and water-related disaster events. to investing in new road infrastructure in order expenditures as annual budget provisions and existing infrastructure due to poor construction to ensure that any transport investments are Approved by the Prime Minister in 2012, the has established a reserve fund for unplanned practices and lack of necessary maintenance, optimized in terms of value to the city/region. MARD-developed Flood Control Master Plan for contingencies, which as of June 2014 had a respectively. Two key logistical challenges, for example, were the period 2013-2020 presents a solid foundation balance of approximately 11 percent of overall identified: (a) ensuring adequate movement of Strengthen capital investment planning to for taking targeted action, especially looking at annual revenues. This annual provisioning rice and other goods related to food production facilitate better prioritization, monitoring, and the proposed investments identified for Phases 1 practice, which the city has frequently used to within Can Tho and to external markets, and (b) achievement of economic development goals. and 2 of the Plan. Specifically, Phase 1 focuses on cover annual needs, and the existence of the ensuring the movement of people and supplies Currently in Can Tho, the capital investment the urbanized area of Ninh Kieu and includes a reserve fund, which the city has never used, during flooding events. For both, excessive planning process takes place on an annual basis ring dike, tidal sluice gate, pumping station, and appear potentially quite useful for coping with reliance on road-based transport may not be an during the normal budget preparation. Technical improvements to the sewer and drainage system. hazards that the city has faced and supporting effective (or cost-effective) strategy. There is staff from DPI indicated that departments Phase 2 focuses on Binh Thuy (northwest) and the city’s robustness to shocks and stresses. an underutilized port located in relatively close present projects that are then appraised and includes extension of the dike along the Hau River However, additional analysis on the city’s financial proximity to the Can Tho Bridge, and there is an approved by DPI, but that final selection of to the north and a new dike to protect rural areas. management, including growth of the reserve extensive system of canals throughout the area. A projects is decided by the People’s Committee. fund over time, and the city’s full contingent Guide urban growth with transport investments. logistics specialist could advise on the best way DPI noted that criteria for selection include liabilities would be required to determine the Transport plays a major role in inducing and to utilize these assets. Taking into consideration socioeconomic benefits but the justification for adequacy of these measures for the city’s risk guiding urbanization, and transport investments Can Tho’s specific circumstances and needs, the final selection is not completely transparent (for profile. in Can Tho should be used to strengthen the role logistics specialist could recommend the best example, if one project has more beneficiaries of the urban core as the locus of development strategic mix of resource investments into all of Strengthen financial management to enhance than another at the same cost, it would not and growth. Current plans may have the effect Can Tho’s transport assets — port, canals, and the quality and sustainability of infrastructure necessarily be selected). Shocks and stresses of reducing population density in the urban core roads — to meet the logistics challenges; and at investments. A greater focus on the results to future investments were not considered in through the creation of multiple growth poles the same time, recognizing that any development of budget allocations rather than just the the discussions but appeared to play a part in the province. This includes doubling of the and investment in the roadway system will induce money spent could improve the efficiency of only in specifically risk-reducing infrastructure road surface area in Ninh Kieu, which will only some level of urban settlement and activity along expenditures and the quality of outcomes. investments such as river management. accommodate 50,000 new inhabitants, and those roads, which can have deleterious impacts Currently, the Can Tho CPC (through the assumes that most new urban inhabitants will on development patterns around the city. DOF) has limited decision-making authority Priority Investments locate in one of the other growth poles along over recurrent expenditures as these often fall Encouraging modal diversity and redundancy will Flood protection measures in the urban core. the Hau River. It is recommended to rethink this under mandates from the central government also be important for enhancing the resilience of Flood risk reduction and management decisions strategy because the distances are substantial on their usage. For example, the DOF noted Can Tho, including public transport (bus-based) should be based on perceived risk reduction and, if successful, it risks putting substantial (and minimum levels of expenditures on science/tech development and potentially strengthening benefits and a combination of physical and non- unnecessary) pressure and traffic on the QL91. (10-15 percent), education (10-15 percent), and waterway transport for passengers and freight. physical solutions on the regional scale of the An unintended consequence could be that new environment (10-15 percent). The consideration Currently, Can Tho relies on a monoculture of Mekong Delta. That is, any investments in flood residents, who would otherwise prefer to locate of future trends in resource availability or motorcycle-based mobility. Although the city is prevention or protective infrastructure must take near Ninh Kieu, would instead be attracted to the different agencies’ operating and capital needs in the process of developing a plan to strengthen a river basin approach, considering the impacts Vinh Long province on the other side of the new appears limited. The DOF staff reported that bus-based public transport, infrastructure-related of these investments on neighboring provinces Can Tho bridge where they would have better if there is a shortfall in revenues compared to discussions are almost completely focused on in the Mekong Delta. Conversely, the impacts of accessibility to Ninh Kieu as well as national road projections, which happened in five of the last roads with the assumption of truck-based freight planned investments further north in the Mekong connections to Ho Chi Minh City. 70 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 71 and motorcycle-based passenger mobility. implementation of the second, long-term phase the remaining canals in the urban core that are Motorcycles are an extremely resilient form of of the Plan. These efforts are being supported not covered by VUUP 1 and VUUP2. Moreover, transport, capable of functioning and facilitating through technical assistance from the Water and there is an opportunity to promote social access in adverse conditions. However, this Sanitation Program. By 2020, Can Tho aspires inclusion and long-term sustainability of the does create challenges for road safety and to have an improved drainage system to reduce improvements through a more participatory accessibility of certain vulnerable populations flooding, a wastewater collection and treatment approach with local communities, including (such as the elderly and disabled), as well as air system that can serve all urban areas of the city, Khmer ethnic minorities, for which the poverty quality and quality of life challenges. and a solid waste management system that can rate is three times higher than that of the adequately cope with the volume of solid waste Kinh people. This will be especially important With all of the above in mind, the priority generated by the city. Early attention should be for smaller canals that have less visibility investments in transport identified through the given to resolving the temporary solid waste from public thoroughfares, and are therefore CityStrength Diagnostic would likely include disposal situation at multiple sites in Can Tho potentially more susceptible to having solid (a) the second bridge crossing at Quang Trung; due to the high risk that leachate from the solid waste disposal and encroachment problems. (b) upgrading and selective provision of new waste will contaminate adjacent agricultural roads in the urban core, especially those that fields. encourage a public transport spine like Tran Hoang Na; and (c) strengthening of waterway The first wastewater treatment plant in transport, subject to the recommendations of a Can Tho is being constructed with financial logistics study. and institutional support from the German development agencies, GIZ and KfW (€18 Invest in sanitation to keep up with rapid million). This treatment plant is located at Cai urbanization. The Can Tho City Sanitation Sau in South Can Tho and is expected to become Development Plan, developed under the national functional in 2014. With a 30,000 cubic-meter- Unified Sanitation Sector Strategy and Action per-day capacity, it will only treat wastewater Plan, aims to coordinate the environmental from Ninh Kieu. Efforts should be taken to sanitation activities of the city departments, leverage the investment made in this wastewater the district peoples committees, and other treatment facility by promoting private related agencies in the city. It focuses on urban investment in household connections to the drainage, wastewater collection and treatment, sewer. Unless individual buildings are connected and solid waste management activities, as to the sewer system, the treatment facility well as providing direction and guidance to contributes little to thwarting environmental improve environmental conditions in rural areas, degradation in the city. industrial zones, handicraft villages, and medical institutions. Continue to focus on urban upgrading. Addressing encroachment on canals and The City Sanitation Development Plan will be riverbeds remains a priority, especially in the implemented in two phases: a short-term phase urban core. Over the last decade, Can Tho during 2013-2016 and long-term phase during has made great progress in upgrading low- 2016-2020. By 2016, Can Tho plans to develop income areas (LIAs) and improving the drainage and improve policies, strengthen institutional system in the city as part of the Vietnam Urban arrangements, mobilize adequate financial Upgrading Project (VUUP 1) and the Mekong resources, introduce appropriate/advanced Delta Region Urban Upgrading Project (VUUP 2). technologies, implement education programs, These activities should be scaled up to address and build capacity to support the successful 72 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 73 Immediate Measures The following table highlights a set of immediate measures Can Tho can take to begin the process of enhancing its resilience. What explains the action that needs to be implemented. How outlines the necessary activities required to implement the action. Why explains the rationale for the action. And finally, Who gives an indication of the most likely department or institution that could be responsible for implementing the action or for providing the necessary input. Quantify Damage and Better Understand the Consolidate Momentum Improve the WHAT Improve Data Collection Strengthen Capital Losses from Seasonal Flow of Goods in for Sanitation Capacity Coordination of Donor and Sharing Investment Planning Flooding Can Tho Building Agencies in the City Establish a transparent HOW Set up an open data for Introduce a standardized Conduct a freight logistics Leverage WSP support to Host a workshop or roundtable initiative to collect and map process for ranking proposed study for road and waterway the newly established City discussion with active donor damage and loss assessment physical data points capital projects, resilience transport Environmental Sanitation agencies and development considerations Coordinating Committee partners • To improve the efficiency of expenditures and the quality • To better understand the • To enable local officials of outcomes demand for improved • To improve the quality and • To develop and implement • To improve the to quantify the impact roadways between rice responsiveness of physical • To establish a more capacity building effectiveness and impact of of flooding on the local production areas, national and financial planning transparent process for programs to improve and donor support WHY economy and budget roads, and ports selecting investments in strengthen sanitation • To promote social • To create a coordinated infrastructure • To assess the feasibility of management and planning inclusion by engaging local • To support the prioritization portfolio of projects and using waterways for freight capacity communities to collect data of flood prevention • To integrate flood and technical assistance transport or back-up freight infrastructure urbanization risks into the transport formal budget process CCCO in partnership with Can Tho University could DARD and the SCFSC in close be the home for risk related collaboration with DPI and DOF DOF could coordinate the WHO databases and could could coordinate action in close collaboration DOT in collaboration with Sanitation Coordinating DPI in collaboration for coordinate input from all with the DPI with input from DPI and the Chamber of Committee in collaboration the CCCO departments The MOF could provide needed other relevant departments Commerce with DPI and DOF input in terms of human and DOC could lead on asset data technical resources collection 74 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 75 Resources on Can Tho The following resources were reviewed as part of the CityStrength Diagnostic (some Cities Alliance. 2002. Enhancing Access of the Urban Poor and Vulnerable Groups in Vietnam to Basic Infrastructure and Services. Fourth study in the serve as references for citations in the publication). Some sectors were more prominent series, “Development of a detailed action plan for a selected city (Can Tho)”, than others, including urban development, water and sanitation, social issues, disaster Vietnam: Cities Alliance http://isted.ville-developpement.org/villes- risk management, and climate change adaptation. developpement/cities_alliance/task4_report.pdf AIT-UNEP. 2011. Assessment of Capacity Gaps and Needs of South East Asia Countries Huong and Pathirana. 2013. “Urbanization and Climate Change Impacts on Future Urban in Addressing Impacts, Vulnerability, and Adaptation to Climate Variability and Flood Risk in Can Tho City, Vietnam”. Journal of Hydrology and Earth System Climate Change – Research synthesis Viet Nam, pp. 32-51 Bangkok: AIT-UNEP Sciences, Vol. 17, 379–94. http://www.hydrol-earth-syst-sci.net/17/379/2013/hess- http://www.climateadapt.asia/upload/publications/files/4e1aba053931aDesktop_ 17-379-2013.pdf Study_Vulnerability_&_Adaptation.pdf International Centre for Environmental Management. 2009. Can Tho City Climate Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network “Can Tho City Introduction”: Change and Urban Planning. Mekong Climate Change Forum, 12-13 November http://www.acccrn.org/initiatives/vietnam/can-tho 2009. Conference presentation. Retrieved 05 May 2014, from http://www. icem.com.au/documents/climatechange/mdcc_report/22_ky_quang_vinh_en.pdf Ca, T.N. 2006. Universities as Drivers of the Urban Economies in Asia: The Case of Vietnam. World Bank, Washington, D.C. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/ ISET (Institute for Social and Environmental Transition)–International. 2010. Climate handle/10986/8428 Resilience Case Study-Can Tho: (1) Program Overview; (2) Climate Can Tho Climate Change Coordination Office. 2013. “Nature of Can Tho”. Resilient Cities Change Coordination Office; (3) Participatory Research on Dengue Fever in the 2013: 4th Global Forum on Urban Resilience & Adaptation, 31 May – 2 June Context of Climate Chang; (4) Real-time monitoring for responding to saline 2013. Bonn: ICLEI. Conference presentation. Retrieved 05 May 2015, from intrusion; (5) Community Based Urban Flood and Erosion Management http://resilient-cities.iclei.org/fileadmin/sites/resilient-cities/files/ for Can Tho City. Retrieved 05 May 2014, from http:// Resilient_Cities_2013/Presentations/D3_Vinh_RC2013.pdf static.weadapt.org/knowledge-base/files/1247/51e550394dc32iset-vietnam- cantho-casestudies-130418.pdf Can Tho City. n.d. “Can Tho Overview”. Basic information about city sectors on municipality website. http://cantho.gov.vn/wps/portal/ JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency). 2012. Unit 2 of Mon 1 Power Plan Construction Project Kicked Off (2012 September 21). Retrieved 16 May Can Tho City. n.d. Investment Handbook - Overview of Can Tho City. 2014, from http://www.jica.go.jp/vietnam/english/office/topics/ http://canthopromotion.vn/handbook/english/chapter1/overviewofcanthocity.htm c8h0vm000001sp52-att/press120921_en.pdf Can Tho CPC (City People’s Committee). 2010. Can Tho City Climate Change Resilience Plan 2010-2015: English Synthesis Report. Retrieved 05 May 2014, from Knaepen, H.L. 2013. Mainstreamed Donor Policy Dialogue on Climate Change in Vietnam. http://www.acccrn.org/sites/default/files/documents/VN_Cantho_ The Earth System Governance Tokyo Conference, 28-31 January CC_RS-SUMMARY_0.pdf 2013. United Nations University Headquarters: Tokyo. Unpublished conference paper. Retrieved 15 May 2015, from http://tokyo2013.earthsystemgovernance. Can Tho CPC. 2013. Can Tho Sanitation Development Plan. org/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/0209-KNAEPEN.pdf Can Tho CPC. 2014. “The Achievements and Orientation of Social-Economic Loan, N. T. P. 2010. Problems Of Law Enforcement In Vietnam: The Case Of Wastewater Development in Cantho City” and “Master Plan of Can Tho City until 2030 and Management In Can Tho City. ZEF Working Paper Series, No. 47. Bonn: University with a vision to 2050”. CityStrength - Resilient Cities Program – Launch of Bonn. http://www.econstor.eu/handle/10419/88297 Workshop, 16 June, 2014. Workshop presentation. Carrard, N., M. Paddon, J. Willetts. and D. Moore. 2012. Poverty Dimensions Mai Thy, P.T., V. Raghavan, and N.J. Pawar. 2010. “Urban Expansion Of Can Tho City, Vietnam: A of Water and Sanitation Services and Climate Vulnerability in Can Tho City. Study Based On Multi-Temporal Satellite Images”. Geoinformatics. Vol.21(3), 147- University of Technology, Sydney. http://cfsites1.uts.edu.au/find/isf/publications/ 160 https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/geoinformatics/21/3/21_3_147/_article carrardetal2012povertywaterclimatecanthocity.pdf Moglia, M., L.E. Neumann, K.S. Alexander, M.N. Nguyen, A.K. Sharma, S. Cook, N.H. Trung, Challenge to Change, The Dragon Institute, The Mekong Rice Institute, Can Tho D.D.A. Tuanc. 2012. “Application of Water Needs Index: Can Tho City, Mekog Delta, University. 2009. Hazard, Capacity and Vulnerability Assessment (HCVA) Vietnam”. Journal of Hydrology, Vol. 468-469, 203–12. http://www.sciencedirect. in Relation to Climate Change. Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network com/science/article/pii/S0022169412007159 Online Publication, Retrieved 05 May 2015, from http://www.acccrn.org/ sites/default/files/documents/HCVACanTho_0.pdf 76 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 77 Moglia, M., M.N. Nguyen, L. E. Neumann, S. Cook, T. H. Nguyen. 2013. 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PDF/687570ESW0WHIT00Box369254B00PUBLIC0.pdf World Bank, Washington, D.C. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/ Pham, Cong Huu, Eckart Ehlers, and Saravanan V. Subramanian. 2009. Dyke System Planning: handle/10986/2826/669160ESW0P1130Review000Full0report.pdf?sequence=1 Theory and Practice in Can Tho City, Vietnam. ZEF Working Paper Series, No. 47. Bonn: World Bank. 2012. Tools for Building Urban Resilience: Integrating Risk Information Into University of Bonn http://www.econstor.eu/dspace/ Investment Decisions Pilot Cities Report – Jakarta and Can Tho. World Bank, Washington, bitstream/10419/88292/1/752009176.pdf D.C. https://www.gfdrr.org/sites/gfdrr.org/files/publication/EAP_Tools_for_Building_Urban_ SCE. 2013. Comprehensive Resilience Planning for Integrated Flood Risk Management. Technical Resilience_2012.pdf report. World Bank. 2013a. Assessment of the Financing Framework for Municipal Infrastructure in Shah, Fatima, and Federica Ranghieri. 2012. A Workbook on Planning for Urban Resilience in the Vietnam. World Bank, Washington, D.C. Face of Disasters: Adapting Experiences from Vietnam’s Cities to Other Cities. World Bank. 2013b. Socialist Republic of Vietnam: Performance of the Wastewater Sector in Washington, DC: World Bank http://elibrary.worldbank.org/doi/book/10.1596/978- Urban Areas: A Review and Recommendations for Improvement. World Bank, Washington, 0-8213-8878-5 D.C. Vietnam Ministry of Transport. 2013. Central Mekong Delta Connectivity Project: Resettlement World Bank. 2013c. Vietnam’s Evolving Poverty Map: Patterns and Implications for Policy. Policy Plan for Can Tho City. Plan prepared for the Asian Development Bank. http://www. Research Working Paper, WPS 6355. World Bank, Washington, D.C. adb.org/sites/default/files/projdocs/2013/40255-043-vie-rp-01.pdf 78 ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE ENHANCING URBAN RESILIENCE 79 The maps on pages 21-23 of this report was produced by the Map Design Unit of The World Bank. The boundaries, colors, denominations and any other information shown on this map do not imply, on the part of The World Bank Group, any judgment on the legal status of any territory, or any endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries. Under the Quang Trung Bridge - Can Tho Cover Photo by Robert Muckley