The 11th Forum was held under the theme “Net Zero 2050: Building Trust – Creating Transformation”. VCSF continues to affirm its position as the leading dialogue platform of the business community at the national scale on sustainable development (SD) in Vietnam, organized annually since 2014 by the Vietnam Federation of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), with the core being the Vietnam Business Council for Sustainable Development (VBCSD).
The green transformation journey towards Net Zero 2050 poses many challenges for countries and economies around the world, especially for developing countries like Vietnam, and businesses are an important driving force to promote synchronous transformation and build trust towards the goal of Net Zero 2050.
Opening the plenary session of the Forum, VCCI Chairman Pham Tan Cong said, “When deciding to choose the theme “Net Zero 2050: Building trust – Creating transformation” for this year’s Business Forum for Sustainable Development (VCSF), we, VCCI-VBCSD, hope that the Forum will be an opportunity for the business community to continue to join hands to affirm the trust and efforts of businesses in the process of realizing the goal of bringing net emissions to “0” by 2050. That trust is being built and thereby creating strong impulses for synchronous transformation: transformation in awareness; transformation in thinking and transformation in action. We also clearly understand and believe that the efforts of the business community will always receive guidance, companionship and joint support from the entire political system.”
The VCSF 2024 Forum program also includes a variety of contents from sharing articles and discussions in thematic sessions and plenary sessions on good practices of typical enterprises in sustainable business in Vietnam. Thereby, VCSF 2024 contributes to raising awareness, promoting the business community to transform business thinking to sustainable business, especially emphasizing the role of the Board of Directors and senior executives in building and spreading ESG-integrated leadership thinking; pointing out the importance of developing human capital in the strategy of sustainable development of enterprises in particular and serving the Net Zero goal in general; encouraging enterprises to take stronger actions through sharing green transformation initiatives of typical enterprises in different fields. Recommendations from the Forum will be compiled by VBCSD-VCCI and reported to the Government and the National Council for Sustainable Development, as input for formulating new policies to facilitate sustainable development of enterprises and promote green transformation of enterprises towards the goal of Net Zero 2050.
From the voice of the business community, Mr. Larry Lee - Deputy General Director of SABECO shared: SABECO operates 26 breweries and has many trading companies and thousands of points of sale. We always consider sustainability as the foundation of everything we do, which not only benefits us but also society. The major challenges in achieving sustainability goals are the gap in technology and costs.
SABECO has installed rooftop solar power at 17/26 factories at a significant cost, but we need to aim for long-term benefits – contributing to Vietnam’s Net Zero target by 2050 and the benefits far outweigh the costs. We have to be careful and thorough because sustainability is not just about the current model but also about the future. Finally, regulatory education is also an important challenge, not only for businesses to comply but also to proactively work within the frameworks that allow for strong growth and positive contributions to the country.
A key element in the journey towards sustainability is building strong relationships. With an extensive network of partners, SABECO relies heavily on its partners, including in the supply chain. It is important to find partners who are like-minded, value sustainability, and work towards common standards. When everyone shares the same vision, the burden of cost management becomes lighter because everyone is sharing it with us.
With the mission of developing SABECO into a leading beverage industry group in Vietnam, with a position in the region and internationally, SABECO's sustainable development strategy aims to maintain balanced development between the ESG pillars of Environment, Society and Governance. SABECO is committed to promoting the ESG sustainable development strategy by identifying and evaluating key topics that impact stakeholders in production and business development activities and priority ESG goals.
Regarding the Environment, SABECO is committed to complying with environmental protection laws, actively participating in responding to climate change and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, along with focusing on finding solutions and initiatives for continuous improvement to minimize environmental impacts and effectively use resources, raw materials, packaging, energy and water.
The VCSF 2024 Forum program also includes a variety of contents from sharing articles and discussions in thematic sessions and plenary sessions on good practices of typical enterprises in sustainable business in Vietnam. Thereby, VCSF 2024 contributes to raising awareness, promoting the business community to transform business thinking to sustainable business, especially emphasizing the role of the Board of Directors and senior executives in building and spreading ESG-integrated leadership thinking; pointing out the importance of developing human capital in the sustainable development strategy of enterprises in particular and serving the Net Zero goal in general; encouraging businesses to take stronger actions through sharing green transformation initiatives of typical enterprises in different fields.
Recommendations from the Forum will be compiled by VBCSD-VCCI and reported to the Government and the National Council for Sustainable Development, as input for formulating new policies to facilitate sustainable business development and promote green transformation of businesses towards the Net Zero 2050 target.
