Businesses are still worried about survival.
In July 2024, when the report "Readiness and difficulties of enterprises in green transformation" of the Private Economic Development Research Board (Board IV) was submitted to the Government, public opinion was stirred up by the fact that over 60% of enterprises out of a total of 2,730 surveyed enterprises said: "Not prepared at all" for the green transformation process.
A small and medium-sized enterprise based in Hoai Duc (Hanoi) - who asked to remain anonymous - shared with reporters that the enterprise is interested in green conversion, but currently only considers this a trend that many people talk about and does not see it as mandatory.
"It's really difficult to go green. I don't know where to start or what to do first because I see that everything has to change, but how to change is still vague. Not to mention that to meet green criteria, businesses have to spend a lot of capital, but how to borrow capital to go green is also something to think about.
After the pandemic, it was difficult for us to get orders back, but then the economic recession, orders were cut, logistics costs increased due to geopolitical tensions. It was difficult to maintain business operations, let alone go green" - the business leader shared.
Vietnam committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050 at the COP26 Conference. The national strategy for green growth to 2030 was issued, setting out requirements for businesses in production transformation. Vietnam's major export markets such as the US and Europe also have strict regulations on reducing carbon emissions for imported goods.
However, there are few businesses that dare to stand up and accept the risk to invest in green transformation, most of them are corporations with great potential. Or they must be businesses that are directly affected if they do not transform green.
As in the textile sector, currently 27 EU markets are tightening standards for imported goods under the European Green Deal (EGD) to respond to global climate emergencies by 2050. Therefore, textile and garment enterprises that have had good export relationships with these markets are also forced to change.
Strengthen communication, remove policy difficulties
We have made a very strong commitment to achieving net zero emissions, despite many efforts to discuss solutions to promote green transformation through workshops, research, forums, etc. However, the speed of completing the legal framework is still considered slow and has not gone into detail to promptly resolve business problems, and there is no mechanism to help clear the flow of capital for businesses to make green transformation.
According to WHO, Vietnam is the second most air polluted country in Southeast Asia and the 22nd in the world, with the capital Hanoi alone ranking 8th in terms of air pollution globally.
Clearly, failing to address the issues of mechanism, policy, and technology will render our efforts to achieve our commitment to net zero emissions by 2050 meaningless.
For example, ESG is now considered a core factor that helps businesses maintain sustainable development in the context of globalization and climate change. This certification is important to businesses because it helps them attract investment capital, have more opportunities for international cooperation, improve operational efficiency and reduce costs; increase customer reputation and support, protect the environment, increase social responsibility...
However, according to Delta West's report, most Vietnamese businesses still face difficulties in implementing ESG strategies due to lack of understanding, financial limitations and lack of transparent information.
