At the launch ceremony in Ninh Binh province on Wednesday, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment announced that the Van Long Wetland Nature Reserve has been recognized as Vietnam’s ninth Ramsar site. Deputy Minister Vo Tuan Nhan said: “The recognition of Ramsar sites in Vietnam aims to honor values of biodiversity and preserve and promote the depleted biodiversity of the world and Vietnam. These Ramsar sites serve people’s livelihood, tourism, and sustainable development. I hope that other Ramsar sites of Vietnam will soon be recognized.”

The Van Long Wetland Nature Reserve is one of the few intact lowland inland wetland areas remaining in the Red River Delta. It is centered on a block of limestone karst outcrops that rise from the flat coastal plain of northern Vietnam. The freshwater lake, marshes and swamps that surround the karst, together with subterranean hydrological systems, form a wetland complex that is very rare in the region. Ramsar, or the Convention of Wetlands, is an intergovernmental treaty that provides a framework for conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources.