Viet Nam’s agroecology vision in an 80-year journey

The rice fields interspersed with shrimp ponds in An Giang, the lotus and water lily blossoms emerging in the coastal region of Ca Mau, and the pepper and banana gardens intermixed within the vast Central Highlands coffee area. These three images not only show biodiversity but also reflect how Vietnamese farmers are learning to adapt with climate change rather than fight it.

Climate change is reshaping Viet Nam’s agricultural map. According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, salinity intrusion and drought alone affect more than 1.3 million hectares of cultivated land annually. If the sea level rises by 1 meter, the Mekong Delta could lose up to 40% of its production area. These challenges force the crop production sector to shift its mindset from increasing yield to maintaining the ecosystem. Land is no longer solely for production but must also be a resource dedicated to environmental recovery and protection.

In this journey, climate-smart agriculture projects play a pioneering role. From the VnSAT program to the Mekong Delta Climate Resilient and Sustainable Agriculture Transformation Project (MD-ICRSL), Viet Nam has made long strides in replanning its cultivation systems to suit each agroecological zone.

More than 1.8 million farmers have been trained in adaptive techniques, including the use of fertilizers, irrigation water, and drought-tolerant crop varieties. Nearly 200,000 hectares of rice, industrial crops, and fruit trees have been converted to low-emission production models, helping increase resource efficiency and improve livelihoods for hundreds of thousands of households.

In 2025, Viet Nam’s crop production sector enters a new phase with the Project “Low-Emission Production in the Crop Sector for the 2025 - 2035 Period, Vision 2050”, a milestone that institutionalizes the agroecology vision. This project can be considered a pioneering program that lays the groundwork for a Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) system for greenhouse gas emissions across the sector, with the aim of participation in the international carbon market.

According to Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, Hoang Trung, building the MRV system is extremely difficult and complex. After the process is completed, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment will pilot a carbon credit trading model that allows farmers to benefit from reducing emissions. Priority crop groups will be based on three criteria: area, potential for emission reduction, and ecological advantage, focusing immediately on five key groups: rice, coffee, pepper, fruit trees, and long-term industrial crops.

“The Plant Production and Protection Department must clarify the personnel, the tasks, the timeline, the products, and the scale of the locality,” Deputy Minister Hoang Trung stressed. Mr. Hoang Trung also stated that this is a national action movement, demonstrating Viet Nam’s commitment to the world regarding its responsibility to respond to climate change. The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment is also directing the Department of Climate Change to coordinate with international partners to pilot a domestic carbon market before 2028, laying the foundation for an agricultural carbon exchange.

Along with policy, production practices are also shifting strongly. In An Giang, the “1 Must, 5 Reductions” model continues to spread and is widely applied, helping reduce 20-30% of fertilizers and pesticides, save water, and reduce methane gas emissions. In Ninh Binh, thousands of rice farmers have switched to using bio-products and microbial organic fertilizers, increasing soil fertility and reducing nitrous oxide (N2O) gas.

Meanwhile, in the Central Highlands, the Western Highlands Agriculture and Forestry Science Institute (NOMAFSI) is researching the intercropping of macadamia and cashew trees, both of which increase income and restore degraded land. When replicated, these models form a multi-layered production ecosystem in which crops, soil, and water support each other and coexist.

According to FAO experts, Viet Nam is heading in the right direction by considering agroecology as the pillar of food security and biosecurity. Besides advancing the Net Zero commitment by 2050, the transition also helps the crop sector solidify its position in the global supply chain, as international markets increasingly demand low-carbon, deforestation-free, and ecologically traceable products.

After 80 years of development, Viet Nam’s crop production sector has moved from the “seed revolution” to the “ecological revolution.” If the rice grain in 1989 opened the path for exports, today, the carbon credit, a symbol of agriculture’s regenerative energy, is opening a new chapter for green development. This transformation is clearly felt from technology and policy to the mindset of farmers, as they realize that every field and every row of trees is a part of the ecosystem.

From the rice-shrimp fields and coffee-banana gardens to the smart farming systems connected with meteorological data, everything demonstrates one thing: Viet Nam’s crop sector has surpassed the limits of productivity to enter an era of ecological knowledge. Over the past 80 years, agriculture has not only firmly maintained its position as the backbone of the economy but has also strongly committed to the world that Vietnam will develop not by exploiting nature but by regenerating with nature.