Viet Nam pioneers South-South cooperation in agriculture

On May 29, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment held the Meeting on Promoting Viet Nam - Africa Agricultural Cooperation and officially launched the South-South Cooperation Working Group in Agriculture.

Strengthening Viet Nam - Africa agricultural connectivity

In his opening remarks, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Environment Hoang Trung affirmed that international cooperation, particularly among developing countries, reflects the Ministry’s strong commitment to proactively implementing the Party’s foreign policy and the State’s international integration strategy. He emphasized that such cooperation is an urgent necessity for sharing experience, transferring technology, strengthening capacity, and jointly addressing global challenges.

South-South cooperation is increasingly demonstrating its role as an effective mechanism suited to the conditions of countries in the Global South. Rather than one-way assistance, it is a process of sharing experience, practical models, and appropriate solutions among nations with similar circumstances and high potential for replication.

In line with this vision, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment issued Decision No. 3786/QĐ-BNNMT dated September 16, 2025, establishing the South-South Cooperation Working Group in Agriculture. Through this mechanism, the Ministry aims to develop highly practical cooperation initiatives, strengthen links between the needs of partner countries and Vietnam’s capabilities and experience, and promote trilateral cooperation models involving Vietnam, development partners, and recipient countries.

Le Anh Tuan, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, stated that Viet Nam and African countries share close ties and common aspirations for peace, self-reliance, and sustainable development. Over the years, bilateral relations have been nurtured through the positive values of South-South cooperation, with agriculture consistently playing a central role and carrying great expectations from the leaders and people of both sides.

“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is committed to closely coordinating with the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment to create a favorable political environment and deepen relations between Viet Nam and African countries. We stand ready to accompany Vietnamese businesses in seeking investment opportunities, developing agricultural and agro-processing projects, and transferring technology. Through these efforts, we aim to strengthen partnership networks and mobilize resources for the South-South Cooperation Working Group,” the Deputy Foreign Minister said.

On this occasion, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also called on development partners, international organizations, research institutes, and international experts to actively support South-South cooperation initiatives and projects between Viet Nam and African countries.

6 Strategic directions for the South-South Cooperation Working Group in Agriculture

Regarding the Group’s future orientation, Pham Ngoc Mau, Deputy Director General of the International Cooperation Department and Head of the South-South Cooperation Working Group, said the Group will focus on 6 key areas of action:

First, the Group will develop a portfolio of South-South agricultural cooperation initiatives with clear priorities, targeted regions, and strong implementation feasibility. In the initial phase, priority sectors will include rice, food crops, coffee, fisheries, livestock, forestry, small-scale irrigation, agricultural extension, climate change adaptation, and agricultural value chain development.

“We plan to promote the establishment of a Vietnamese expert network for South-South cooperation, bringing together managers, scientists, technical experts, agricultural extension specialists, market experts, and businesses with practical experience.

At the same time, we will strengthen trilateral cooperation models in which Viet Nam shares experience, experts, and technical solutions; recipient countries identify their needs and implementation conditions; while international organizations, development partners, and donors provide support in terms of resources, project governance, and sustainability standards,” he shared.

The Working Group also aims to increase Vietnamese enterprises' participation in cooperation programs with Africa and other developing countries. It will serve as a platform to connect information, needs, partners, and opportunities for cooperation while ensuring balanced benefits for all parties involved.

Regular coordination mechanisms with African embassies in Viet Nam, Vietnamese representative missions in Africa, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and relevant ministries, sectors, and localities will also be strengthened to ensure that cooperation initiatives are based on practical needs, aligned with the development priorities of partner countries, and supported by effective implementation conditions.

In the long term, the Working Group aims to build a South-South cooperation ecosystem in agriculture, including a database of cooperation needs, expert networks, enterprise directories, priority projects, pilot models, financing mechanisms, and regular dialogue channels among relevant stakeholders.

“With the support of embassies, donors, international organizations, ministries, research institutes, local authorities, and businesses, I believe South-South cooperation in agriculture can become a highly promising cooperation channel, contributing to the sustainable development of partner countries while also expanding the international cooperation space for Viet Nam’s agricultural sector,” said Working Group Head Pham Ngoc Mau.

Dr. Vinod Ahuja, FAO Representative in Viet Nam, described the establishment of the South - South Cooperation Working Group in Agriculture as an important institutional step with the potential to become a platform for promoting new forms of cooperation and mutual learning among countries.

“The core value of South - South cooperation lies not only in the transfer of technical solutions, but more importantly in sharing experience in managing transformation processes, institutional development, policy adjustment, improving incentive mechanisms, and adapting farming systems over time. FAO will continue to work closely with the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment and relevant stakeholders to advance South - South cooperation initiatives in the coming period,” he stated.