The dual pressure of business transformation

The trend is irreversible.

At the Vietnam Women Entrepreneurs Forum 2024 organized by the Vietnam Women Entrepreneurs Council (Vietnam Federation of Commerce and Industry - VCCI) and the Asia Foundation on November 7 in Hanoi, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Hang commented that the global economy is witnessing profound, comprehensive, structural and epochal changes. The current smart era has opened up opportunities for breakthrough development. However, it also poses unprecedented challenges for the business community, especially small and medium-sized enterprises and women-owned enterprises.

The strong development of digital technologies and new technologies is rapidly changing traditional production and business models. In this context, dual transformation, focusing on green transformation and digital transformation, has become an irreversible trend, and at the same time, it is also a mandatory solution for enterprises to improve their resilience to global shocks, reduce dependence on limited resources, and open up new growth drivers for the economy.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Hang.

"The current context requires businesses to not only adapt and adjust to change, but also be proactive in mastering and creating change. Women are the most affected by the current dual transformation process. International experience shows that to be successful, there must be a development mindset and a new approach," Deputy Minister Nguyen Minh Hang acknowledged.

Emphasizing the challenges of enterprises, Ms. Bui Thu Thuy - Deputy Director of the Department of Enterprise Development (Ministry of Planning and Investment) said that the dual conversion trend poses many challenges for the business community. These include commitments at COP 26, COP 27, requirements from European countries, some of which must be applied by 2025, otherwise it will be impossible to export to Europe.

Ms. Thuy expressed concern that domestic enterprises, especially small and medium enterprises and enterprises owned by women, are still facing many difficulties, and financial resources, human resources and solutions are not enough to implement "green" with "digital".

Ms. Pauline Tamesis - Resident Coordinator of the United Nations in Vietnam also assessed that the current digital and green transformation process is very challenging for Vietnamese enterprises led by women. Although Vietnam has made significant progress in empowering women, female entrepreneurs still face challenges brought by the digital and green transformation process such as: difficult access to finance, access to digital, green finance and cybersecurity are still barriers. In addition, gender expectations can also limit women's opportunities in business and the dual transformation process.

Actively innovate thinking

To address the above challenges, according to Ms. Bui Thu Thuy, there needs to be involvement of authorities and support from relevant parties. The State needs to provide clear mechanisms and policies on what constitutes green criteria and green projects to facilitate bank disbursement. Recently, many banks have shared that they do not have criteria for green projects.

As a state agency supporting businesses, over the past years, the Ministry of Planning and Investment has implemented policies to support businesses in dual transformation, aiming to improve their capacity to respond to green transformation and digital transformation. The Ministry has also coordinated with many sponsors to implement many initiatives and develop documents to support businesses in identifying their readiness for dual transformation activities.

Mr. Nguyen Quang Vinh - Vice President of Vietnam Federation of Commerce and Industry (VCCI).

At the forum, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs expressed his belief that despite many challenges, with the entrepreneurial spirit and resilience, Vietnamese female entrepreneurs will be ready to overcome all difficulties, turn challenges into opportunities, and seize opportunities to create breakthrough development in the dual transformation era.

"We hope that women in general and entrepreneurs in particular will continue to be proactive in innovating their thinking and embracing new technologies to master the green transformation and digital transformation process," the Deputy Minister shared.

Sharing the same perspective, Mr. Nguyen Quang Vinh - Vice President of the Vietnam Federation of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) said that Vietnamese women with their resilience and strong creativity can become leaders leading the dual transformation journey and mastering this era, implementing economic development activities associated with the environment and social responsibility.

Mr. Vinh recommends that female entrepreneurs pay more attention to new business trends, including natural business to protect the environment, respond to climate change, transition to fair energy, launch green and clean products, apply technology to deploy effective business models, develop sustainably, and contribute more to the economy, environment and society.

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