Search Results (175)

This study was conducted to examine the moderating effect of size on the impact of human capital on bank performance, using data from 26 commercial banks in Vietnam from 2008 to 2023 through panel data regression methods. The results indicate that bank size and human capital are important resources for commercial banks to increase their performance, which is consistent with the resource-based view and economies of scale theory. However, bank size fails to exhibit a significant moderating effect on the impact of human capital on the bank performance in Vietnam. This phenomenon can be explained by the relatively limited influence of size effects on human capital, coupled with the fact that the majority of Vietnamese commercial banks place significant strategic emphasis on human capital development within their operational frameworks. In addition, this study highlights the impact of some internal factors and the macroeconomic conditions on bank performance. From these empirical findings, this paper recommends several critical policies. Full article

The present study investigates Vietnam’s economic structural transformation from 2007 to 2023, identifying key sectors contributing to output growth and poverty reduction. The study is situated within the broader context of industrialization and sustainable development in emerging economies. It employs structural decomposition analysis using Vietnam’s national input–output tables for the years 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019, and 2023. The analysis decomposes changes in total output into technical effects and final demand effects, allowing for an evaluation of the relative contributions of sectoral productivity and demand side factors. The findings of the study indicate that the manufacturing and services sectors have been the primary drivers of economic growth, with the electrical and optical equipment, food, beverages and tobacco, and basic metals sectors demonstrating particularly strong performance. The factor of final demand, which is derived from consumption, investment, and exports, has played a dominant role in driving output. Notably, export-led manufacturing has experienced significant benefits due to Vietnam’s engagement in free trade agreements. It is noteworthy that the agriculture sector demonstrated a period of recovery between 2019 and 2023, driven by an increase in final demand. This study underscores the pivotal function of sectoral adaptability, trade openness, and strategic policy in maintaining inclusive economic development. It is evident that the phenomenon under scrutiny is not only indicative of vulnerabilities and opportunities but also shaped by global shocks, for example, the coronavirus pandemic. Full article

This paper critically examines the consequences of land grabs for livelihoods and agrarian change, based on a case study of rubber plantations in ethnic minorities in the uplands in Northwest Vietnam. Building upon Scoones’ agrarian political economy of livelihood framework, an integrated conceptual framework of a ‘livelihood pathway’ is developed to analyze the impact of rubber plantation land grabs on livelihoods and the agrarian political economy. Drawing on qualitative analysis and survey data from 205 households across six villages inhabited by Thai, Hmong, and Kho Mu communities, this study finds that rubber plantation land grabs have led to differentiated livelihood strategies—ranging from subsistence farming and wage labor to commercial agriculture—shaped by each group’s socioeconomic status, political connections, and access to resources. Consequently, the land grabbing undertaken by a domestic state-owned enterprise has caused the emergence of a set of distinctive livelihood pathways within a complex web of intersections across class and ethnicity in the upland area. This study concludes by arguing that an integrated conceptual framework of a ‘livelihood pathway’ offers a useful tool for analyzing the long-term socio-political consequences of land grabbing in similar contexts across developing countries and beyond. Full article

Blockchain technology has recently emerged as a transformative innovation with the potential to enhance transparency, accountability, and efficiency, key pillars of sustainable financial and accounting systems. Despite its relevance to sustainable digital transformation, the adoption of blockchain in accounting practices remains limited, particularly in developing economies such as Vietnam. This study investigates the behavioral factors influencing the intention to adopt blockchain in financial accounting among manufacturing enterprises, drawing on the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) and the Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB). Survey data from 320 Vietnamese manufacturing firms were analyzed using Cronbach’s Alpha, exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and structural equation modeling (SEM) to examine both direct effects and mediating pathways. The results reveal that performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions, and perceived cost significantly affect attitudes, which in turn strongly predict intentions to adopt blockchain. Attitudes also partially mediate these relationships, underscoring their central role in shaping sustainable technology adoption behavior. Notably, trust in technology does not exert a significant influence, suggesting that practical and organizational enablers outweigh individual-level trust in this context. This study contributes to the emerging literature on blockchain-enabled sustainable accounting by extending the UTAUT–TPB framework and offering insights for policymakers, technology providers, and managers aiming to foster sustainability-driven digital transformation in financial practices. Full article

Graduate employability remains a crucial challenge for higher education institutions, especially in developing economies. This study investigates the key academic and vocational factors influencing early employment outcomes among recent graduates at a public university in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta region. By leveraging predictive analytics, the research explores how data-driven approaches can enhance career readiness strategies. The analysis employed AI-driven models, particularly classification and regression trees (CARTs), using a dataset of 610 recent graduates from a public university in the Mekong Delta to predict early employability. The input factors included gender, field of study, university entrance scores, and grade point average (GPA) scores for four university years. The output factor was recent graduates’ (un)employment within six months after graduation. Among all input factors, third-year GPA, university entrance scores, and final-year academic performance are the most significant predictors of early employment. Among the tested models, CARTs achieved the highest accuracy (93.6%), offering interpretable decision rules that can inform curriculum design and career support services. This study contributes to the intersection of artificial intelligence and vocational education by providing actionable insights for universities, policymakers, and employers, supporting the alignment of education with labor market demands and improving graduate employability outcomes. Full article

Land use and land cover (LULC) in coastal areas is critical in shaping the ecological systems, regional economy, and livelihood of indigenous communities. This study analyzes LULC changes (LULCC) in Soc Trang Province, Vietnam Mekong Delta, from 2010 to 2020 and simulates future LULC for 2030 under four scenarios: natural growth (business as usual, BAU), climate change challenges, profit optimization, and adaptation strategies. Satellite-based LULC maps and geospatial datasets were integrated into a LULC simulation model based on a Markov Chain and Cellular Automata to predict LULC in 2030 under disparate scenarios. Simultaneously, this study also estimates economic values and ecosystem service values as proxies to evaluate benefits and trade-offs between the scenarios. The research findings reveal that the critical LULCC observed during 2010–2020 are transitions from triple rice crops to double rice crops, rice–shrimp to brackish aquaculture, and expansion of perennial plantations. These transitional trends will persist at a modest rate under the BAU scenario in 2030. The climate change challenge scenario will intervene up to 24.2% of the total area, with double rice crops reaching the most extensive area compared to other scenarios, about 106,047 ha. The profit optimization scenario will affect 16.03% of the total area, focusing on aquaculture expansion to the maximum shared proportion of 34% (approximately 57,000 ha). Adaptive solutions will emphasize reducing triple rice crops while expanding double rice crops and reviving rice–shrimp to different extents depending on development pathways. Economic evaluations show a growth trend across scenarios, with maximum returns under profit optimization. Yet, ecosystem service values notably highlight ecological trade-offs, raising concerns about balancing economic benefits and ecological trade-offs in land use planning. The research findings recommend a comprehensive and multitarget approach to land use planning that integrates ecosystem services into initial assessments to balance benefits and trade-offs in coastal areas commonly affected by LULCC. By adopting well-informed and strategic land use plans that minimize ecological and social impacts, local sustainability and resilience to climate change can be significantly enhanced. Full article

The overwhelming amount of cassava residues and okara are a foremost challenge for the food processing industry environmental loading. The purpose of this article is to utilize Pleurotus ostreatus mycelium to ferment solid cassava and soybean residue, resulting in mycelial biomass with nutritional values and promising prebiotic activities from fermented waste sources. By blending a ratio of 80% cassava and 20% soybean residues, the mycelium spread rapidly after 3 days of culture, from 1.73 mm on the first day to 13.32 mm on the third day, and completely covered the surface after 9 days of culture (120 mm). Using the solid-state fermentation (SSF) method allowed us to improve the content of substances isolated from mycelium biomass, where polysaccharide content rose by 2.1 times to 3.44 mg/g, and the protein content increased by 1.84 times over the initial substrate. The prebiotic activity of extracted PS was greatest in P. acidilactici NBD8 (1.58); for L. pentosus NH1, L. argentoraten NH15, and L. plantarum WCFS1 strains, the indices were 0.11, 0.17, and 0.3, respectively. The SSF process with P. ostreatus mycelium has the potential to be an effective method for improving the nutrition and digestibility of soybean and cassava residues for application in the production of nature-derived animal feed, as well as contributing to fully utilized agricultural residue, agriculture’s circular economy, reducing environmental issues, and achieving the net-zero carbon emissions target by 2050, as the Vietnam government committed to achieving during the COP26 World Leaders’ Summit in 2021. Full article

A stable electricity supply is a key factor for sustainable development in Vietnam, a rapidly growing developing country with increasing energy consumption. This article delves quantitatively into the economic effects and benefits arising from the construction of a 1.5 GW capacity natural gas-fired power plant (NGPP). Input–output analysis was applied to identifying the economic effects. Specifically, production-inducing effects and value-added creation effects were analyzed separately for the construction and operation of the NGPP. Based on the economic theory, the economic benefits were computed as the sum of the electricity price and consumer surplus resulting from electricity consumption. During the construction period of the NGPP, it is expected to induce USD 2315.60 million of production and USD 414.75 million of value-added for the Vietnamese economy. The production-inducing effects, value-added creation effects, and economic benefits ensuing from the operation of the NGPP in 2030 were estimated to be USD 833.36 million, USD 235.75 million, and USD 1164.33 million, respectively. The cost–benefit analysis revealed a benefit-to-cost ratio of 1.45, which is higher than 1, indicating the economic feasibility of the construction. Therefore, the construction of the NGPP can be implemented with social net benefits. Full article

This paper examines the financial health risks that private sector water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) businesses in rural Vietnam face. It investigates the challenges faced by water operators and sanitation suppliers involved in donor-funded development projects aimed at supporting poor and vulnerable households. Through surveys and focus group discussions with 15 suppliers who worked in public–private partnerships, this research examines the financial risk factors affecting water and sanitation suppliers and their impact on financial viability through two case studies. For water operators, the risks primarily involve infrastructure management, operational costs, and revenue instability. In the sanitation sector, risks center around fluctuating material prices, limited business expansion capital, and household affordability. This study highlights the dual role of government and donor subsidies, which enhance service accessibility but potentially distort market dynamics. It also underscores the need for targeted financial and policy interventions, including better access to microfinance, regulatory improvements, and human resource development. The findings aim to inform strategies for government, donors, and private sector actors in similar WASH development contexts to enhance financial sustainability, ensuring inclusive WASH services in underserved areas. This paper contributes to policy discussions by proposing mechanisms to balance public–private collaboration while fostering market resilience and equitable access to WASH services in emerging economies similar to that of Vietnam. Full article

The world economy is developing rapidly, and many countries in the world are facing pressure of energy demand due to economic development. Vietnam is one of the countries that has advantages in solar energy development, so it plans to develop renewable energy in the structure of the energy balance. The article analyzes the policies of a number of countries in the world that have significantly developed the field of solar energy (USA, Germany, Japan) or have some similarities with Vietnam (China, Thailand, Australia). Based on the results of the analysis, we develop recommendations for a strategy for sustainable development of the solar energy sector in Vietnam. Full article

This study aims to explore the impact of key drivers on the integration of blockchain technology implementation and green innovation practices within green supply chains. This study combines the TOE and TAM frameworks to identify six key driving factors that in the proposed model. A survey was conducted with Vietnamese enterprises, resulting in 328 valid responses from senior managers across various sectors. The PLS-SEM approach was conducted to analyze the relationships between the variables and to gain deeper insights into their interactions. The research findings highlight the significant potential of adopting blockchain and green innovation programs to enhance organizational performance. Six essential factors act as key drivers for implementing these initiatives, exerting a positive influence. Among them, Perceived Usefulness, Organizational Readiness, and Partnerships emerge as the three most influential variables within this research framework. Our research offers several valuable implications, both theoretical and practical. The structural framework model provides empirical evidence demonstrating the feasibility of achieving expected benefits for green supply chains, particularly in emerging economies such as Vietnam. Thus, these results serve as valuable references for senior managers and policy makers. Full article

In order to contribute to the body of knowledge on sustainable poverty reduction by exploring the relationship between rural and structural transformations and rural poverty incidence in Asian developing countries, this paper selected China, the Philippines, and Vietnam as case studies. Based on a comparison with the provincial data from those three countries, both the graphic and regression analysis suggest that structural and rural transformations matter in rural poverty reduction in these three countries. There is strong evidence showing that raising the share of non-agricultural GDP and the share of rural off-farm employment significantly contributes to rural poverty reduction in all three countries. More importantly, with the expansion of the non-farm sectors in both urban and rural areas, high-value agricultural share has a statistically significant and negative correlation with rural poverty in China and Vietnam over time, while such a negative correlation is much weaker or even does not exist in the Philippines. This paper further concludes with several implications for policymakers to promote inclusive structural and rural transformations. Full article

In this study, we present a comprehensive analysis to examine the resilience of tourism in Vietnam since the Doi Moi period. Using an augmented Solow framework, data from 1986 to 2020, and the ARDL approach, we estimate the long-run and short-run effects, whilst accounting for model-specific structural breaks. To provide stronger validation and robustness of the results, we estimate eight models under four cases. We start with the base model, which includes tourism and capital (in per worker terms), and then augment it with factors that are carefully identified from the literature. The additional factors include urbanisation, financial development, trade openness, foreign direct investment (FDI), information and communication technology (ICT), and natural resources. We find that capital accumulation and tourism (in per worker terms) remain positive drivers of growth in all the estimations. Results from alternative models also highlight the pro-growth effects of urbanisation, financial development, and trade openness. A positive association between carbon emissions and economic growth is also noted, indicating the existing production–consumption setup, the pace of environmental harvesting, and the weak decoupling effects that could lead to negative externality in the long run. Factors like technology, natural resource rents, and FDI show negative effects on growth as well. Moreover, by examining the causality dynamics, the study further contributes to broader policy discussion. Hence, policies targeted to promote the growth process, and the advancement of the economy, should continue supporting capital accumulation, tourism development, urbanisation, financial development, and international trade. However, future economic policies should cautiously address emissions, natural resource use, and re-evaluate the gains from foreign direct investment (FDI) to ensure growth remains sustainable. With tourism and capital accumulation at the core of this study, the findings of this study are intended to generate deeper policy discussions on resource allocations and the need to harness and/or rely on contemporary sources of growth to promote the sustainable development of Vietnam. Full article

This study investigates the influence of Top Management Team Competencies (TMTCs) and Middle-Tier Managers’ Competencies (MMCs) on the intention to adopt Industry 4.0 (I4.0) technologies in Thailand and Vietnam. Utilizing a quantitative approach with Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM), data from 100 manufacturing firms reveal the critical roles of Industry 4.0 readiness level (RL) and perceived usefulness (PU) as mediators in these relationships. The findings highlight that while TMTC significantly enhances organizational readiness, its direct impact on adoption intention is non-significant. Conversely, MMC directly influences both PU and adoption intention, emphasizing the practical role of middle management in bridging strategic vision and operational execution. RL mediates the effects of TMTC on I4.0 adoption intention, whereas PU does not mediate the relationship between TMTC and adoption intention. These insights contribute to the literature on digital transformation, particularly in emerging economies, by identifying distinct managerial roles and the importance of readiness in driving adoption. This study underscores the need for tailored competency development among top and middle managers to foster successful I4.0 adoption and suggests further research into organizational culture, external support, and regional variations. Full article

The fashion industry, which stands out for its creativity and dynamism, has multidimensional impacts in terms of environmental sustainability from raw material extraction to waste management. The textile and fashion industries are criticized for posing significant threats to the ecosystem, biodiversity, and human health by negatively impacting air, water, and soil quality throughout the cycle, from production and distribution to consumption and disposal. By focusing on five emerging economies among the top ten textile exporters, this study focuses on an empirical examination of the nexus between the fashion and textile industry, energy consumption, economic growth, and carbon dioxide emissions. This study fills the existing quantitative research gap in the fashion sector. It provides a comprehensive review that analyzes the environmental impacts in the sector to adopt more sustainable and effective policies. After acknowledging the structural breaks in the sample covering 1980–2023, novel Fourier bootstrapping ARDL and Fourier Granger Causality methods are adopted to examine the long- and short-run interconnections and the directions of causality in a comparative setting for China, Türkiye, India, Bangladesh, and Vietnam. The results confirmed the positive effects of textiles and fashion as well as energy consumption and economic growth with varying magnitudes for the countries examined. The causality tests confirmed varying and complex unidirectional and bidirectional causality and feedback effects among the variables examined depending on the country analyzed, in addition to identifying common causal effects from textile and fashion to environmental degradation. The findings are of great importance and have significant policy implications. Full article