Vietnam adapts to global trends in environmental, social and governance practices
Practicing responsible business in accordance with Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) criteria is considered a key that contributes to realising Vietnam’s commitment to bring net emissions to zero by 2050.
On the journey towards green growth, ESG criteria are the standard for measuring and evaluating an enterprise’s sustainable development and its impact on the community. Many of Vietnam’s major trade and investment partners have had strict requirements on this issue.
Currently, Vietnamese laws are being designed to lag slightly behind EU standards to ensure that markets do not hinder or stop trade and investment with Vietnam. If higher standards are set, costs will increase, and Vietnamese businesses may lose their competitive edge. Conversely, if the standards are set too low, Vietnamese businesses may face the risk of being excluded from the market due to slow adaptation. Most Vietnamese businesses are small and medium-sized, so “collaboration” will help reduce costs for companies, said Dr. Nguyen Dinh Tho, Director of the Institute of Strategy and Policy on Natural Resources and Environment under the Ministry of NaturalResources and Environment (MoNRE).
