Experts shared this assessment at the "Agriculture Forum 2026: Creating New Development Space and Growth Drivers for Vietnamese Agriculture", organized by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and Enterprise Forum Magazine in ho chi minh city on the afternoon of 16/7.

Tran Ngoc Liem, Deputy Secretary General and Director of VCCI in ho chi minh city, cited data from the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, stating that over 50,000 enterprises currently invest in agriculture.

Only 1-2% of Vietnam's nearly one million enterprises are involved in the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries sectors. "This is a modest figure, even though agriculture has always been a backbone economic sector," Liem commented.

The application of scientific and technical advancements is not widespread. Fewer than 300 enterprises nationwide utilize high technology, which is less than 3%. The number of businesses officially recognized as "high-tech agricultural enterprises" is fewer than 50.

Tran Ngoc Liem, Deputy Secretary General and Director of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) in ho chi minh city, speaks at the forum on the afternoon of 16/7. Photo: Enterprise Forum

Tran Ngoc Liem, Deputy Secretary General and Director of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) in ho chi minh city, speaks at the forum on the afternoon of 16/7. Photo: Enterprise Forum

Le Thi Anh Tuyet, Deputy Director of the Dong Nai Department of Agriculture and Environment, noted that while the province has over 300 agricultural enterprises applying high technology, none have received official state recognition.

Regarding scale, Doctor Pham Viet Thuan from the Institute of Economics of Natural Resources and Environment in ho chi minh city, indicated that most leading enterprises in agricultural procurement and export are foreign companies. "Therefore, we need more large domestic corporations to assume this role in the future," he said.

Experts highlighted several reasons for the limited number and strength of agricultural enterprises. Ngo Xuan Chinh, Director of the Agricultural Technical Advancement Transfer Research Center, explained that large enterprises invest little due to difficulties with land and capital. "Some businesses have the capacity to invest in growing thousands of hectares of bananas for export but cannot find land," he recounted.

According to Nguyen Hoang Anh, Chairman and CEO of Nam Mien Trung Seafood Investment Company, land accumulation is a dream for businesses in the sector, but it remains difficult to achieve. "After researching in Laos, we found that tens of thousands of hectares are available for lease, but it is very hard to find 1,000 hectares for cultivation in Vietnam today," he shared.

Doctor Pham Viet Thuan observed that while the Land Law has paved the way for land accumulation, its practical implementation faces obstacles. Businesses aiming to develop agricultural models on rice land confront complex registration procedures at the commune level.

Ngo Xuan Chinh proposed a land bank model, where the state leases and accumulates land, then leases it to enterprises.

Parallel to this is the challenge of accessing capital. Investment in agriculture accounts for only about 11% of total credit outstanding, significantly lower than the real estate sector. The primary reasons are a lack of collateral and barriers to accessing funds.

Doctor Pham Viet Thuan pointed out the illogical asset valuation methods used by banks. Agricultural land in ho chi minh city is currently valued at approximately 450,000 VND per square meter, and existing infrastructure such as barns is often considered "non-performing assets" by banks, leading to devalued collateral. "As a result, a 14-hectare modern pig farm can only secure a loan of about 2 billion VND," Thuan explained. Therefore, experts believe a state guarantee mechanism is needed to encourage banks to shift from traditional collateral-based lending to cash flow and value chain-based lending.

Doctor Pham Viet Thuan, Institute of Economics of Natural Resources and Environment in ho chi minh city, speaks at the event on the afternoon of 16/7. Photo: Enterprise Forum

Doctor Pham Viet Thuan, Institute of Economics of Natural Resources and Environment in ho chi minh city, speaks at the event on the afternoon of 16/7. Photo: Enterprise Forum

Tran Ngoc Liem emphasized the need for more preferential credit packages to provide farmers with capital for investing in raw material areas. He particularly advocated for encouraging public-private partnership (PPP) models to strengthen links among the state, businesses, and farmers.

Le Thi Anh Tuyet, Deputy Director of the Dong Nai Department of Agriculture and Environment, mentioned that Decree 57 was enacted to encourage business investment in agriculture, yet few entities have received support in practice. "The Ministry of Agriculture and Environment is currently reviewing and adjusting it, and we hope this will create more favorable conditions in the coming time," she stated.

Beyond land and capital, businesses investing in agriculture also face obstacles from weak logistics infrastructure in remote areas, leading to increased transport costs. The sector's labor force is also becoming increasingly scarce.

Doctor Tran Dinh Ly, Vice Rector of Ho Chi Minh City University of Agriculture and Forestry, noted that the direct labor force is aging as younger generations tend to migrate to industrial and service sectors in major urban areas. "Agriculture faces a severe shortage of a knowledgeable successor workforce," he said.

According to Ly, there is a need to expand mechanisms for training orders from localities and businesses to universities. He encouraged businesses to establish scholarship funds, internship funds, and co-invest in human resources. Concurrently, mechanisms are needed to attract experts, scientists, and overseas Vietnamese to participate in agricultural training and development in the regions.

In 2025, the export turnover of agricultural, forestry, and fishery products exceeded 70 billion USD. In the first half of 2025, exports from this sector continued to increase by 6%, reaching 35.88 billion USD. The government aims for export turnover to reach 100 billion USD by 2027.

Despite export growth, agriculture's contribution to the economy is shrinking. Doctor Thuan pointed out that its proportion of the total gross domestic product decreased from 12.34% in 2024 to 11.2% in 2025, and is projected to be around 10.38% this year. To reverse this trend, he stressed the urgent need to create new development space based on an agricultural economic mindset rather than a purely output-driven approach.

Vien Thong