Sharing at the "Vietnam Banking Industry ESG Forum", Ms. Nguyen Thu Huong, Senior Program Manager - Good Governance Program, representative of Oxfam believes that a transparent, fair and sustainable financial system is the foundation to achieve sustainable development goals, actively contributing to poverty reduction, fair development, environmental protection...
According to Ms. Huong, the banking industry ESG forum took place in the context of Vietnam's efforts to strongly implement the commitment at COP26 to achieve zero emissions by 2050. With the Government issuing a green regulatory system in 2025, the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) has oriented to strengthen the management of social environmental risks in credit activities of banks, creating an important foundation for credit institutions and banks that practice ESG systematically, approaching international standards.
At the seminar on "ESG practices in commercial banking", Mr. Nguyen Trong Co - Deputy Director of BIDV Integrated Risk Management Board shared his experience in integrating ESG into the risk management process.
Mr. Co commented that banks need to integrate climate risks into the decision-making process and manage portfolio risks including both material risks and transitional risks. This can be done through a detailed portfolio assessment to understand potential risk transmission mechanisms and display them through tools such as heat maps.
In addition to limitations and difficulties from customers, credit institutions (CIs) also face many barriers, Mr. Co pointed out: "The current green credit incentive policy is only at the orientation level, there is no specific mechanism to recognize and promote the role of CIs in this activity".
The collection and management of data related to ESG practices such as calculating greenhouse gas emissions, the impact of projects funded by green bond/social capital, etc. still faces many challenges. In particular, there is a shortage of human resources to implement ESG.
Proposing solutions in the coming time, the Deputy Director of BIDV Integrated Risk Management Board said that management agencies need to complete the overall legal framework, build a financial support mechanism and encourage green credit, and develop human resources.
In particular, strengthening the organization of training programs and sharing knowledge and experience plays an essential role. Develop forums, seminars, and cooperation mechanisms with international organizations to transfer technology, provide technical assistance, and improve capacity. Develop training cooperation programs with reputable financial institutions, helping credit institutions access in-depth knowledge and practical experience.
On the side of the Banking Academy, Dr. Nguyen Thi Khanh Phuong - Representative of the National Institute of Banking Research said that training institutions always aim to form high-quality human resources.
Most students have recognized the importance of ESG. At the same time, the diverse training content does not stop at traditional environmental economics but is also expanded to corporate governance and social responsibility ethics. Some schools have built specialized, high-quality classes and training programs.
However, Dr. Nguyen Thi Khanh Phuong commented that there are still limitations in the process of training high-quality human resources since she was still in school. The number of classes called "ESG" is still limited. Integration mainly takes place in the form of integration. Many specialized subjects are only prioritized for implementation in High-Quality programs or specialized majors.
"The teaching staff has experience and standardised curriculum that is updated internationally and suitable for the limited context of Vietnam. Along with that, the coordination between departments/veducts to build integrated programs is not really strong" - Dr. Phuong expressed.
In addition to in-depth presentations, the roundtable discussion session recorded many opinions from management agencies, commercial banks, consulting organizations and researchers.
Speakers affirmed that ESG is not only a requirement for compliance but also a strategic factor, directly affecting competitiveness, risk management efficiency and access to international capital.
