Logistics is considered an industry that will continue to make breakthroughs and green logistics is a goal that businesses must achieve for sustainable development.
Logistics is a major contributor to carbon emissions.
At the workshop "Green Logistics - Sustainable Destination" recently organized by the Vietnam Logistics Services Association (VLA), Mr. Dao Trong Khoa, Chairman of VLA, said that climate change is one of the biggest global challenges in the 21st century. In particular, the logistics industry alone is contributing significantly to carbon emissions - CO2, estimated at 7-8%.
The reason is that currently, about 75% of goods are still transported by road, while 12% of goods are transported by sea and only 2% by rail; up to 95% of means of transport in Vietnam still depend heavily on fossil fuels.
 |
| Green logistics is a solution towards sustainable development (Photo: Viettel Post) |
In addition, in recent times, Vietnam's e-commerce has recorded strong growth. If Vietnam's B2C e-commerce sales in 2014 only reached 2.97 billion USD, by 2024 it had reached 25 billion USD, equivalent to an average increase of 26.7%/year, accounting for about 9% of total retail sales of goods and consumer service revenue nationwide.
Logistics plays a crucial role in that success as it is an indispensable link in fulfilling orders and transactions. With 43.9 million people participating in online shopping, Vietnam is the country with the highest rate of people participating in e-commerce in Southeast Asia and also shows that the delivery demand of this industry is always necessary.
However, e-commerce has been revealing many unsustainable factors related to logistics activities. For logistics in e-commerce, road transport currently accounts for a much higher proportion than other modes of transport. Meanwhile, the amount of greenhouse gas emissions from road transport is nearly 22 times higher than that of aviation, nearly 20 times higher than that of sea transport and nearly 250 times higher than that of rail transport. The World Bank (WB) calculates that on average, transport activities in Vietnam emit more than 50 million tons of CO2 each year, of which road transport accounts for 85%. Vietnam's greenhouse gas emissions continue to increase by an average of 6-7% per year, with domestic transport sectors forecast to emit up to 60 million tons of CO2 in 2024 and 90 million tons in 2030.
Businesses get involved
Investing in technology, changing the transportation process towards green logistics and sustainable development are important goals that logistics enterprises are aiming for. Accordingly, as one of the leading logistics enterprises aiming towards the goal of developing green logistics, during its operation, Viettel Post Joint Stock Corporation (Viettel Post) has applied the model of "mobile post offices". These "mobile post offices" are designed on trucks, using data sharing technology to connect post offices with each other as well as postmen with post offices.
The sender's goods will be sorted and routed directly on the vehicle and the import and export process will be carried out via a mobile application to quickly handle the next steps. With this model, Viettel Post has cut down on intermediaries, reduced the transportation distance by 15% and the number of transfer vehicles. Thereby, limiting the frequency of vehicle operation, reducing emissions into the environment; at the same time, limiting the circulation of goods helps to minimize the need to wrap shockproof nylon layers for postal items, reducing the amount of waste into the environment.
 |
| Vietnam Post puts electric motorbikes into use in delivery operations (Photo: Quan Do) |
Or, Vietnam Post Corporation (Vietnam Post) is also a business that is making efforts to switch to green development. Specifically, in 2021, Vietnam Post was the first postal enterprise in Vietnam to cooperate with Honda Vietnam to put electric motorbikes into use in delivery activities, helping to reduce emissions to the market.
Ms. Pham Thi Tinh - Commercial Director of Hanoi branch - Interlog International Logistics Joint Stock Company said that to develop green and sustainably, Interlog focuses on 3 main pillars: employee awareness, followed by energy conversion and having optimal solutions to cut costs.
Since the end of 2022, Interlog has focused on internal training from leaders to employees to increase awareness of green transformation. At the same time, the company has promoted the application of technology and digital transformation to reduce paperwork in management and operation.
The company also offers solutions to help reduce carbon emissions for customers through advice on delivery routes, helping to reduce fuel and transportation costs.
Mr. Tran Thanh Hai - Deputy Director of the Import-Export Department - Ministry of Industry and Trade emphasized that although the transition to green logistics is inevitable, developing green logistics is a great pressure for businesses. Green transformation in logistics will include energy conversion with vehicles and changing transportation methods.
According to Mr. Hai, currently inland waterway transport is a green mode of transport with great advantages in saving energy and reducing carbon emissions. In addition, measures on work processes and improving process efficiency are important factors in developing green logistics. The delivery process needs to be simple and optimized to bring efficiency. At the same time, state management agencies also need to facilitate trade for businesses by simplifying administrative procedures.
New generation trade agreements require Vietnamese enterprises to raise standards and reduce carbon footprints in logistics activities to move towards sustainable development of the supply chain. It can be said that the journey towards green and adaptive logistics will contribute to the process of reducing carbon emissions in the Vietnamese logistics industry in particular and the world in general, towards sustainable trade.
| The Ministry of Industry and Trade is currently developing a Draft Strategy for the development of Vietnam's logistics services for the period 2025 - 2035, with a vision to 2045. One of the contents of the Draft Strategy is to improve the quality and greening of logistics services based on digital platforms. |
Source: https://congthuong.vn/logistics-xanh-huong-den-phat-trien-ben-vung-373825.html
Comment (0)