Illustrative photo. (Source: VNA)Hanoi (VNA) - Some 81 percent of members of the Vietnam Business Council forSustainable Development (VBCSD) will strengthen sectoral links to prevent theirsupply chains from suffering any future disruption caused by a disaster similarto the COVID-19 pandemic, a survey has found.
Thesurvey was conducted by VBCSD to explore how domestic enterprises are doingamid the pandemic and based on this, itmade recommendations for the Government to develop a medium- and long-termresponse strategy associated with the National Action Plan to implement the2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Most enterpriseshave posted sharp declines in revenue as COVID-19 has damaged exports and triggereda shortage of materials, said VBCSD Vice President Nguyen Quang Vinh, who isalso Secretary-General of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI).
Enterprisesmust therefore prepare new suitable business plans that integrate urgentshort-term issues with medium- and long-term strategies, he said, adding that afterthe pandemic ends, global supply chains will soon be restructured andrepositioned.
Thesurvey also revealed that 31 percent of respondents said they have focused orwill focus more on the domestic market and reduce dependency on certain foreignmarkets.
Vinh addedthat many respondents said they will accelerate e-commerce and digitaltransformation to become less dependent on traditional markets and conventionalways of doing business.
Their firsttask, however, is to cut costs and postpone investments in non-essential items.
VBCSDPresident Vu Tien Loc said a sustainable development strategy would benefitbusinesses in the long run as it would help them strengthen their resilience inany circumstance, particularly in the face of COVID-19.
Vinhsuggested enterprises diversify their suppliers rather than prioritising the boostingof efficiency. They should establish a network of short-term suppliers inaddition to those with long-term contracts and at the same time, developrisk management scenarios for their supply chain and adopt more flexible and streamlinedproduction plans.
The VBCSDalso proposed the Government develop a legal framework to facilitatesustainable development. It should formulate and implement plans for improvingsustainable corporate governance in 2021-2025 and the national programme tosupport the business community in promoting the circular economy in Vietnam from2021-2030./.
VNA
