Innovation, agricultural productivity and sustainability in Viet Nam
This report assesses Viet Nam’s agricultural sector through the lens of the OECD Agro-food
Productivity-Sustainability-Resilience (PSR) Policy Framework. Agriculture has played
an important role in Viet Nam’s remarkable economic growth over the past thirty years.
In the 1990s, government policies contributed to strong agricultural productivity
growth, but this has since fallen. OECD Agri-Environmental indicators also reveal
weaknesses in the environmental footprint of growth, notably with respect to nutrient
balances, as a result of the excessive use of agro-chemicals and poor animal waste
management practices. The agricultural sector faces significant resilience challenges
from climate change impacts, including sea level rises and more frequent and severe
storm events. Although the level of agricultural support provided to farmers is relatively
low, policies such as land use regulations are skewed in favour of rice production,
thereby maintaining a production structure dominated by small part-time household
farms that limit innovation. Viet Nam’s support for general services for agriculture
(GSSE) was equivalent to 2.5% of agricultural value added in 2018-20, well below the
OECD average. Shifting the focus of support towards research, development, and innovation
partnerships with the private sector will contribute to improving the agri-environmental
performance of agriculture in Viet Nam. This should ideally be accompanied by a reform
of land use regulations.
Available from June 22, 2022
In series:OECD Food, Agriculture and Fisheries Papersview more titles