The primary aims of the planning grant are to promote the participation of key stakeholders of the proposed project, including local authorities and relevant agencies and communities, and provide scientific assistance for the project development. Major activities of the project include conducting surveys on socio-economic conditions of the proposed project site, identifying proposed project objectives and activities and assessing their feasibility, and providing needed technical assistance in project design and writing project proposal which will be submitted to GEF/SGP for review and appraisal; and identifying possibilities for project synergies and resource mobilization.

Hoi An ancient town was listed as a World Cultural Heritage site by UNESCO in 1999. Hoi An is a remarkable physical symbol combining different cultures over chronological periods in an international trading port. It is also a typical example of a perfectly conserved traditional Asian trade town.

However, during recent years, Hoi An has been facing huge challenges in environmental management due to rapid economic development, especially of the tourism industry. Though the local authority and residents have been aware of the importance of environmental protection in the sustainable development of this world heritage, Hoi An is in a significant shortage of human and financial resources to invest in environmental protection and management.

The urgent environmental issues in Hoi An include:
- Waste management:
+ Domestic waste- solid waste: the current collection capacity only meets 60% of the town?s demand. There are no trash bins in the tourist areas. The town?s landfill is 2 hectares in area and being overused. Implementation of any waste management technologies has caused odor and air pollution in the surrounding environments.
+ Liquid waste, sewage: the sewage system of the town has been largely damaged. There are no sewage pipes in many areas, leading to flooding during rain. The untreated liquid waste from domestic and commercial sectors is being discharged into rivers and canals, causing environmental pollution.
The above environmental problems not only spoil the beautiful scenes of the town but also directly influence the health of local residents and tourists. Hoi An is under the risk of environmental degradation and losing the image of an cultural heritage in the eyes of international friends.

To solve the mentioned problems, there is a need of systematic solutions to deal with unreasonable waste management methods in the town. The main approach in this project is to promote public- private partnership in waste management with the participation of both local residents and firms.

Objectives of the Project

Long-term objectives: to improve environmental quality of Hoi An town, preserve the world cultural heritage, Hoi An ancient town.
Detailed objectives:
- Develop a demonstration model of community participation in solid waste management in Mind An ward, Cam Thanh village to make a good ward/ village model of municipal civilization for Hoi An town.
- Develop a demonstration model of commercial solid and liquid waste management technologies, encouraging the participation of tourism companies in alleviating environmental pollution due to tourism activities.
- Improve environmental law management and execution abilities by assisting in proposing environmental protection policies; respect community involvement in composing, implementing, supervising and reviewing the policies.

Main activities:
- Develop a model of categorizing and treating solid waste from domestic households, restaurants and hotels.
- Develop appropriate solid waste collecting and transporting routes.
- Build collecting, transporting and dumping groups.
- Set up financial mechanisms in waste management.
- Equip the waste management activities.