In order to support the improvement of knowledge and capacity for businesses on good corporate governance towards integrity in business practices, sustainable development and meeting the requirements of international economic integration, the Federation of Commerce and Industry Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) in collaboration with UNDP in Vietnam organized the training program “Improving good corporate governance capacity according to international practices on sustainable development” in 4 provinces/cities including Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh, Can Tho and Da Nang during March 14-23, 2024 focus on 4 main topics including ESG in business, business appraisal, risk management and compliance control. The training program is supported by the British Government and the British Embassy in Hanoi. On the morning of March 22 in Hanoi, speaking at the opening of the program, Mr. Nguyen Quang Vinh – Vice President of VCCI emphasized: In the context of a crisis, customers, and investors will choose businesses that they understand very well about the business philosophy and core values to make business investment decisions and purchase goods because this is only possible when businesses do business based on price. integrity and transparency. Mr. Patrick Haverman – UNDP Deputy Resident Representative in Vietnam shares the same opinion when evaluating the training program to support business compliance and internal control, as a step for us to participate in climate change adaptation. In ESG, Mr. Patrick Haverman appreciates that the word G (governance) is very important, not only building a code of conduct but also a code of ethics and integrity. At the program, Ms. Ruth Turner – Political and Development Counselor, British Embassy in Hanoi expressed optimism about the future development of the Vietnamese business community, especially when focusing on integrity in business and the opportunities brought by business integrity. Business activities based on the development of technology and ESG standards contribute to strengthening capacity and are an important strategy to help businesses target international markets and participate in the global supply chain. If you are interested in learning more about the program content, please download the documents at the link below and/or click here to download. https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Le6B4yKPjiSHao60b2jfDWcsyx0y–Lu’
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Below, please kindly find the entire opening speech by Mr. Nguyen Tien Huy, Director General, Office for Business Sustainable Development – VCCI at the workshop titled “Joining hands to promote a fair business environment in Vietnam”, which devlivered on 22 December 2022 in Hanoi. Ms. Ruth Turner, Political and Development Counselor, British Embassy in Vietnam, Mr. Tomas Kvedaras, Project Specialist, Judicial Integrity Network in ASEAN, FairBiz project, UNDP’s Regional Hub in Bangkok, Thailand, Do Thuy Van, Program Manager, UNDP Vietnam, Ladies and Gentlemen, distinguished delegates, businesses, press agencies…, We are now at the last days of 2022. For businesses, this probably is the busiest time to “speed up and reach the finish line” towards achieving business production plans. Therefore, the large participation of business representatives at the workshop today demonstrates the great interest of the business community in integrity and fair business environment which is always considered as a burning topic. On behalf of Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), I would like to express my sincere thanks today in particular to the representative of the British Embassy, the representative of UNDP’s regional FairBiz project and many businesses and media agencies for attending our workshop titled “Joining hands to promote a fair business environment in Vietnam” and also for actively joining efforts, providing support and coordinating with VCCI on the journey into forming a business integrity community during over time. Ladies and Gentlemen, “Corruption remains one of the biggest obstacles to global socio-economic development. Corruption affects the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; causes negative impacts on markets and generates unequal consequences for the most vulnerable among us. Collective action plays an important role to help implement business integrity and build a more transparent global economy.” As Mrs. Sanda Ojiambo, Executive Director of the UN Global Compact Network underlined in her statement. Sharing the same perception that corruption arises as an issue with global impacts so that a global approach to anti-corruption is required along with a vision for promoting sustainable development of the business community in Vietnam, VCCI understands that only through creating a transparent, fair, integrity business environment, we will be able to mobilize and optimize use of resources of the private sector, avoid losses and waste. From there, businesses can increase their trust and concentrate resources on business production, long-term investment which contribute to the goal of sustainable socio-economic development of the locality and the nation, also improve competitiveness and strengthen international integration. Regarding the National Anti-corruption Strategy until 2020 and the United Nations Convention against Corruption Implementation Plan, as a national organization representing and bringing together the business community and entrepreneurs in Vietnam, VCCI has taken drastic measures to promote the role of businesses, business associations and trade associations in anti-corruption through developing and building a healthy, uncorrupted business culture; creating a transparent and fair competitive business environment; raising awareness on legal compliance of businesses; eradicating step by step bribery in the relationship between businesses and state agencies; coordinating with competent agencies to prevent and promptly detect acts of harassment and bribery of officials and public servants… VCCI has built a cooperative and cohesive relationship with agencies, international organizations by implementing activities to promote anti-corruption practices in business. VCCI has been actively participating in initiatives to learn from experiences, recognize and highlight domestic efforts for the promotion of business integrity. VCCI is a member of the Executive Board of the ASEAN CSR Network, a member of the Integrity Working Group in ASEAN; is an effective partner with international organizations such as OECD, UNDP, and member of the Global Compact Network – UNGC, World Business Council for Sustainable Development – WBCSD… Ladies and Gentlemen, Since 2017, VCCI has been working closely with UNDP under the support from United Kingdom for implementing the FairBiz Project and the Government Business Integrity Initiative (GBII). Mentioning some notable results that we have achieved over the past time such as: nearly 1500 businesses have received training in internal control mechanism and code of conduct; engaging 15 business associations with nearly 13,000 members to sign a business integrity pledge; providing technical support for 05 businesses included Traphaco, Vietnam Maritime Corporation (VIMC), Fine Scandinavia, and 02 female-owned enterprises; initiating the Vietnam Business Integrity Network (VBIN) in 2021. The establishment of VBIN demonstrates great efforts of VCCI, UNDP, and British Embassy in Vietnam in raising awareness of the business community in Vietnam about business integrity, encouraging business leaders to act on business principles and practices, as well as enhancing multi-stakeholder engagement, policy dialogue which facilitates responsible business conduct, and creates a more transparent and equal business environment in Vietnam. VBIN has achieved a number of very important and encouraging initial results such as: the launching of Vietnam Business Integrity Index, assessing the current state of business integrity implementation among 30 listed companies in HCM and HN, building an online tool platform to evaluate the level of business integrity implementation. All these contents will also be shared in detail with delegates at the workshop’s program today. Ladies and Gentlemen, The outcomes of the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) survey conducted by VCCI have shown that anti-corruption practices in recent years have known positive deliverables. Specifically, the rate of businesses having to pay informal fees in general in the PCI 2021 survey decreased to 41.4% compared to 44.9% in 2020. This is also the lowest level in the past 16 years (in 2006 it was 70%). The size of informal expenses also has decreased significantly over time when the proportion of enterprises spending more than 10% of revenue to pay for this type of expense is only about 4.1%, decreased twice as in 2016 (9.1%). However, there’s still a lot of space for improvement. For example, the percentage of businesses having said “The incident of troubling for handling business procedures is common” was 57.4% in 2021, higher than 54.1% in 2019-2020. That being said, in order to create a more transparent and fair business environment, in addition to the leadership of the Government and all bodies of government, the business community must proactively take collective initiatives which have a decisive meaning. Collective action saves time and resources generate significant inspirational influence, and helps accelerate systemic changes towards business integrity and transparency. To go fast, we go alone. But to go far, we must go together. That is also the spirit of SDG Goal 17: Partnership – Strengthening Cooperation. Together, we go further. Together, we go stronger. Let’s join hands and act together towards a fair business environment for all businesses in Vietnam, for the future and sustainable development of businesses themselves. And with that conviction, I would like to respectfully announce that today’s workshop is now open. Wish you all a successful meeting! Finally, I wish you and your family a Christmas season and a New Year 2023 filled with kindness, love and joy! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
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In recent years, a number of free trade agreements (FTAs) have been negotiated and signed, facilitate business to deepen international integration, creating many new cooperation opportunities. Therefore, this requires businesses to ensure transparency and adopt ethical business practices. In fact, businesses with proactive implementation of business integrity are highly appreciated by potential investors, customers and business partners… especially this is an important advantage to join global supply chains. On past November 26th, the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), UNDP Vietnam coordinated with the Vietnam Textile and Apparel Association (VITAS) to organize an online training workshop titled“Guidelines for ethical business practices and professional conduct”. According to Mrs. Dinh Thi Bich Xuan, Deputy Director General of Office for Business Sustainable Dvelopment,VCCI, the training is a key activity aimed to build the capacity of businesses in promoting business integrity and helping to minimize fraud and business risks towards good corporate governance. At the program, Mr. Truong Van Cam, Vice President of VITAS, the co-organizer of the workshop highlighted the importance of an appropriate code of conduct and professional conducts contributing to form a fair and transparent business environment. Through presentations of speakers and vigourous discusiion, businesses have better understood about the essential role of risk management and ethics regarding to business development in the garment industry. As a result, businesses are able to effectively apply step by step the code of conduct to resolve ethical dilemmas in business operations. The training course was provided by experienced experts from PWC Vietnam. The representatives from British Embassy in Hanoi, UNDP, VCCI attended with 70 participants from businesses in the garment industry, middle level managers, human resources, legal officers, internal audit, account-finance officers…
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Currently, Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) criteria have become the deciding factor for the world’s top investors. Therefore, business investment decisions are highly dependent on the outcome of assessing how businesses address issues related to ESG. This criteria requires investors and invested companies to redefine risks in terms of traditional business models as well as opportunities to create sustainable added value in the future. Through the gereous support of the UK Prosperity Fund to ASEAN under the Economic Reform Programme within the UNDP Regional Project “Promoting a Fair Business Environment in ASEAN”, the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), UNDP Vietnam in collaboration with Vietnam Association of Consumer Goods Development (VACOD) co-organized an online training workshop titled “Incorporation of Environmental, Social and Governance criteria in business” on November 24th in Hanoi. At the program, Mrs. Diana Torres, Assistant Resident Representative of UNDP Vietnam emphasized in the opening speech that ethical business practices and responsibility to the community, environment, society are increasingly important to improve transparent corporate governance and legal compliance. Following this, Mrs. Dinh Thi Bich Xuan, Deputy Director General of Office for Business Sustainable Development, VCCI also highlighted that the training course aimed to support businesses to promote business integrity in general and futhermore raise better awareness of appropriate approach to ESG advanced practices. The training course was delivered by experienced experts from PwC Vietnam who have deep knowledge in risk management, internal control and international finance. The course was successfully organized with active participation of 200 delegates including representatives from British Embassy in Hanoi, UNDP Vietnam, VCCI and participants from businesses, middle level managers, legal officers, human resources, internal audit, account-finance officers…The majority of businesses evaluated that the training content is practical, provided fundamental knowledge on methods of assessing business situations in relation to sustainable development and guided businesses to meet ESG reporting requirements and information disclosure.
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The “Governance – Business Initiative – GBII” implemented by the Office for Business Sustainable Development (SDforB) of VCCI funded by the UK Government, ASEAN Economic Reform Program through UNDP’s Regional Project on “Promoting a Fair Business Environment in ASEAN”. We are looking for a local consulting company and/or a national consultant team who have appropriate qualification and experience to develop the Vietnam Business Integrity Index. Please view ToR here for detail. Method of bidder selection: Shorten national shopping by a technical proposal Deadline for submission of technical: before 17 pm, 20th October 2021 Submission form: send email to xuandtb@vcci.com.vn Contact person: Ms Xuân, Tel: 024 35743492
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The “Governance – Business Initiative – GBII” implemented by the Office for Business Sustainable Development (SDforB) of VCCI funded by the UK Government, ASEAN Economic Reform Program through UNDP’s Regional Project on “Promoting a Fair Business Environment in ASEAN”. We are looking for a local consulting company and/or a national consultant team who have appropriate qualification and experience to deliver these trainings. Please view ToR here for detail. Method of bidder selection: Shorten national shopping by a technical proposal Deadline for submission of technical: before 17 pm, 20th October 2021 Submission form: send email to xuandtb@vcci.com.vn Contact person: Ms Xuân, Tel: 024 35743492
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Ha Noi, 28 September 2021 – Fifteen business associations have signed the Viet Nam Business Integrity Pledge to express commitment on corporate compliance and business integrity and transparency. This was told at an online Business Forum in Ha Noi today by the Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), the UN Development Programme (UNDP), and the British Embassy in Ha Noi. The Forum – “Culture of Business Integrity: Pathway to Sustainability and Success” – brought together nearly 130 representatives from businesses, government agencies, international organizations, experts, academia and press agencies. Women play an increasingly important role in business, with female-owned enterprises occupying nearly 30% of the total enterprises and 32% managers of enterprises being women. The 15th member of the Business Integrity Pledge is the Viet Nam Association for Women Entrepreneurs. “I believe an effective business environment, rooted in transparent corporate governance, is a crucial factor to foster bilateral investments and long-term trade partnership between the UK and Viet Nam. The UK sets a high value in merging the ethics and integrity principles into corporate governance since it has long been more than a matter of business’s branding. It forms a wider and more sustainable value not only in financial return but also in minimising negative impacts on the society.” Mr. Marcus Winsley, Deputy Head of Mission, British Embassy in Viet Nam said in his opening speech. On this occasion, the Advisory Group of Viet Nam Business Integrity Network – VBIN – made it first apperance. The VBIN is the first collective action initiative led by business to promote a culture of business integrity and anti-corruption compliance. The mission of the VBIN is to mobilize collective efforts of the business community to comply with rules and regulations related to business integrity and to adopt good business integrity practices, thereby improve corporate governance, ensuring competitiveness and sustainability of Vietnamese businesses. Fifteen Government agencies and businesses, and 5 experts have joined the VBIN Advisory Group. “Though significant improvements recorded, nearly half of businesses surveyed in the Viet Nam Provincial Competitiveness Index 2020 reported paying informal charges,” UNDP Deputy Resident Representative in Viet Nam Patrick Haverman noted. “Further progress in embedding transparency, integrity, accountability, and anti-corruption into Vietnamese companies’ operations will be critical in the socio-economic covid recovery”. Mr. Haverman highlighted important aspects for successful economic rebound, namely Business integrity being a key enabler in doing business in Viet Nam; Companies committed to integrity, transparency, and investing in responsible and sustainable practices being more resilient to crises such as the Covid-19 pandemic and poised to long-term success; and Collective action required to help build a busines integrity culture. The achievements and good practices shared at the Forum are the results of three years’ partnership between VCCI, UNDP and the UK Government under the UNDP’s Regional Project “Promoting A Fair Business Environment in ASEAN” – Fair Biz – funded by the UK Government under ASEAN Economic Reform Programme. More than 800 firms and business associations have improved their knowledge and skills to apply internal control and codes of conduct in their businesses. Four companies have received in-house technical assistance for devleloping and strenthening code of conduct or internal controls. “COVID-19 is a test for business integrity.,” Mr. Nguyen Quang Vinh, VCCI Secretary General, emphasized. “There is something companies can do to protect themselves by putting an integrity agenda at the heart of their response to the challenges. Businesses are also recommended to actively join a business led initiative like Vietnam Business Integrity Network which will allow companies to help each other and collectively work together to enhance good corporate governance towards long term sustainibility” . The Forum is one of the key activities of the Government and Business Integrity Initiative (GBII) implemented by VCCI and UNDP in Viet Nam under Fair Biz. This project aims to support enhancing business integrity and transparency, strengthening laws and policy in anti-corruption, and effective dispute resolution mechanism in Viet Nam.