Country Director of the World Bank for Vietnam Ousmane Dinoe has warned that Vietnam should change its agricultural techniques to ensure higher quality products and sustainable development.
Country Director of the World Bank for Vietnam Ousmane Dinoe (second from the left)
According to the World Bank's report, Vietnam's agricultural sector has recorded good results, going from a country that needed to import food to a food exporter.
However, despite being the top rice exporter, the quality of local products leaves much to be desired, profits that farmers actually earn are small, the technology and creativity are also weak. Agricultural growth depends on increasing the number of crops and materials such as fertilisers and natural resources.
Dinoe said Vietnam was paying an environmental cost and this need to be changed as agricultural growth was on the decline and this sector was increasingly vulnerable to disasters.
Vietnam is facing many difficulties from climate change and saltwater intrusion. Meanwhile, the Mekong Delta, Vietnam's rice bowl, is being threatened by the number of hydropower plants being built on the upstream on the Mekong River. Vietnam needs a new agricultural structure and shift in cultivation.
"The local agriculture is being threatened by rapid urbanisation, developing industrial economy, and increasing labour costs," the report claimed. "The consequences of overusing input materials and the effect on natural resources, the environment and farmers are showing. It's time to give more economic value to both farmers and consumers."
According to the World Bank, in order to ensure food security, the farmers had to plant low-value crops in pursuit of high quantity.
Harvesting rice in the Mekong Delta. Photo by Danviet
The report states that Vietnam does not have to produce more than 30% extra excess of produce for food security. Most of the excessive rice in the Mekong Delta has been exported since 2000 to cheap markets that do not require high-quality rice.
"Vietnam is being tied up by its own food security achievements," World Bank wrote in the report.
Environmental problems are also hindering labour productivity and competitive position of Vietnam in the world market. It is suggested that from 2025 to 2030, Vietnam should use total factor productivity, which is calculated by dividing output by the weighted average of labour and capital inputs.
The local authorities need to play an important role in making plans and developing policies to create the best condition for farmers to expand business and become more competitive.