To achieve its targets to become a modernity-oriented industrialised nation by 2030 and a developed country with high income by 2045, Vietnam must succeed in the digital transformation process, in which agriculture is one of the priority areas, the Minister of Foreign Affairs stated at the Vietnam Agricultural Digital Transformation International Forum 2021.
The event was co-organised via videoconference by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Vietnam Digital Agriculture Association (VIDA), and an e-newspaper outlet under the theme “Keeping up with market trends, ensuring the pivotal role of the economy during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.” The forum was an activity within the framework of the Vietnam International Agricultural Exhibition 2021 (AgriTech Expo 2021).
According to a news report, the forum consisted of two discussions that focussed on policy orientations and the theme “Shaping Vietnam’s digital agriculture until 2035” with the presentation of 20 speakers representing local authorities and leaders of businesses and corporations. Participants at the event shared scenarios of Vietnam’s agricultural digital transformation; key issues in Vietnam’s agricultural development strategies towards digitalisation given the complicated effects from the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain disruption, and climate change.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs noted that the Vietnamese government should proactively and actively participate in the fourth industrial revolution and speed up the digital transformation process. The country must consider it a vital solution and an opportunity to make a breakthrough in socio-economic development.
Speaking at the event, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development pledged to offer all resources and the most favourable policies for businesses, aiming to bring added value to Vietnamese agricultural products and improve their trademarks. The Ministry will strongly support the digital transformation process and replace agricultural technology models as the Vietnamese agricultural sector is not only the “backbone” of the economy in difficult times but also a measurement of sustainability, the Minister said.
Representatives of foreign diplomatic agencies in Vietnam and from research institutes and socio-economic organisations attended the event. Also, domestic and foreign experts in the field of agricultural digital transformation from Japan, the Netherlands, Israel, and the World Bank as well as those from business associations and enterprises.
In August, the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) unveiled a plan to put farming households on e-commerce sites. Farming households will be supported to enter e-commerce sites to connect, advertise, and introduce their products. This will help them access new distribution channels and expand to domestic and international markets. Vietnam has nine million agricultural production households and four million private business households. All the households will be brought onto e-commerce sites, and this will be the first breakthrough to be made in developing the digital agricultural economy.
As OpenGov Asia reported, through e-commerce sites and digital platforms, farming households will receive useful information about farm produce markets, predicted demand and production capacity, weather forecasts, and seed and fertilizer supply. High-quality input materials and tools for agriculture production will be introduced to farmers via the platforms. Overall, MIC will put 12-13 million agricultural production and private business households on e-commerce sites. The targeted figure is five million households by the end of the year.
