– Training Overview –
TRAINING ON ENVIRONMENTAL COMPLIANCE INSPECTIONS IN VIETNAM
Nikko Hotel
Hanoi, Vietnam
December 6-8, 2006
In response to the Vietnam Country Program Assessment completed with support from the Asian
Environmental Compliance and Enforcement Network (AECEN) in 2005, Vietnam’s Ministry of Natural
Resources and Environment (MoNRE) has identified inspector training as a priority activity. Inspector
training is particularly of interest given the recent reorganization of MoNRE, where the provincial
departments known as Departments of Natural Resources and Environment (DoNRE) face a shortage of
qualified personnel to promote environmental compliance and enforcement. Moreover, most DoNRE
officials have a background in land administration and housing.
To support design of an inspector training program to strengthen agency capacity, on December 6-8, 2006,
AECEN and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) will organize a 2 ½-day
training program on the principles of environmental compliance and inspection for 30-35 Vietnamese
participants. MoNRE’s Inspectorate will serve as the chief technical counterpart for the workshop.
As a follow up to the training, on December 8, AECEN and U.S. EPA will conduct a planning workshop to
develop a work plan for an AECEN pilot project on strengthening capabilities in environmental compliance
and inspection. The pilot project could include such elements as assessing existing capabilities, defining
new policies and procedures, developing linkages to environmental compliance and enforcement indicators,
and developing a train-the-trainer program.
U.S. EPA’s Environmental Compliance Inspections Training course is intended for inspectors and
investigators within government institutions responsible for conducting environmental compliance
inspections and using the results of the process to make compliance determinations that may subsequently
result in enforcement actions.
Inspector training is fundamental to the success of any environmental compliance and enforcement
program. There is wide consensus that a range of both carrots and sticks are needed to achieve
improvements in environmental performance and to protect the public and natural resources from illegal
activities that threaten sustainable development. At the foundation of the most innovative and traditional
approaches is the need for credible, professional and quality inspections. U.S. EPA’s mutual goals are to
inaugurate world-wide capacity building through a cadre of trained facilitators who will continue to provide
inspector training, and to stimulate ongoing exchange between inspectors within the context of broader
networking.
Location:
Nikko Hotel, Hanoi, Vietnam
Attendees:
30-35 participants including representatives from the Vietnam Ministry of Natural
Resources and Environment (MoNRE) Inspectorate, and inspectors from various
Departments of Natural Resources and Environment (DoNRE)
Trainers:
U.S. EPA
Language:
English with simultaneous Vietnamese translation
Organizers:
Asian Environmental Compliance and Enforcement Network (AECEN) and the United
States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA)
Draft- for discussion purposes only
November 17, 2006