Development assistance in Vietnam
Promoting women's economic empowerment
Australia is increasing women's economic empowerment by encouraging greater female participation in the labour market and global value chains. This includes supporting Vietnamese farmers, logistics providers and tourism operators to revive and improve their livelihoods, especially businesses led by women and people from minority groups.
Women, especially those from rural and ethnic minority areas in Vietnam, are much more likely than men to be excluded from economic opportunities, and to derive livelihoods from lower value, less skilled and less secure work. Women from ethnic minority groups are less likely to secure waged employment and Vietnamese women overall have less access than men to land, credit and technical training. Many ethnic minority women also have poor financial literacy and less influence over decisions within the home and the community.
Vietnam's National Strategy on Gender Equality 2021-2030 commits to narrow the gender gap, create conditions and opportunities for women and men to participate, to enjoy equality of achievement in all spheres of society and life, and have the opportunity to contribute to the sustainable development of the country to their fullest potential. Australia is working to support women's economic empowerment, including for those most excluded.
The Australia in Vietnam Gender Equality Strategy 2022-2027 is guiding Australia's whole-of-government approach in Vietnam. The Strategy will deepen our efforts on gender equality and women's and girls' empowerment while substantially increasing attention to the socio-economic priorities and inclusion of people with disabilities, ethnic minority groups, and to LGBTI people. The Strategy is framed around the value of ‘equality' to support the rights of all people to make the most of their lives - with dignity, safety and respect.
Australia will focus its support on Vietnam's northern mountainous areas, which have a higher incidence of extreme poverty. Consistent with our economic partnership, we will complement the efforts of the Government of Vietnam by identifying, trialling and scaling-up new approaches to closing gender gaps in economic livelihoods in these areas, including by working with the private sector. We will also support programs and policies that better empower women.
Aus4Reform
$20.5 million, 2017-25
Aus4Reform is helping to relieve key constraints to growth of the private sector (domestic and international), increase Vietnam's competitiveness, and promote regional and global trade. It will help strengthen the evidence-base to support economic reform in line with Vietnam's emerging commitments under regional and international economic cooperation agreements. The program engages international and domestic experts on key policy issues and works with a range of stakeholders to build support for reform. The program also draws on contemporary Australian reform experience and supports institutional links with Australian economic agencies including the Productivity Commission and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
Aus4Reform works with four key agencies in Vietnam: the Central Institute for Economic Management, the Vietnam Competition and Consumer Authority, the Institute for Policy and Strategy in Agriculture and Rural Development, and the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Emerging priorities can be addressed through a flexible funding mechanism, which can be accessed by a range of additional organisations including the Communist Party Economic Reform Commission and the Economic Committee of the National Assembly.
Related documents*
| Name of document | Year published | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Aus4Reform Design Document | 2017 | Design |
| Aus4Reform fact sheet | 2022 | Fact sheet |
| Vietnam Aus4Reform Review | 2022 | Evaluation |
| PAPI Research and Advocacy Programme mid-term review and management response | 2023 | Mid-term review report and management response |
Australia-World Bank Strategic Partnership in Vietnam Phase Two (ABP2)
$50 million, 2017-26
The second phase of the Australia-World Bank Strategic Partnership in Vietnam (ABP2) aims to share knowledge and strengthen development policies and programs through policy dialogue, dissemination of analytical work and capacity building. The program focuses on six key areas: low carbon infrastructure; economic management and growth; climate resilience in the Mekong Delta; inclusion; digital transformation; and gender equality.
Related documents*
| Name of document | Year published | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Australia-World Bank Strategic Partnership (ABP) Phase 2 & The Vietnam Private Sector Development Partnership fact sheet | 2023 | Fact sheet |
| Australia-World Bank Strategic Partnership in Vietnam Phase 2 Mid-Term review report and Management response | 2019 | Mid-Term review report and management response |
Vietnam Private Sector Development Partnership (VPSDP)
$15 million, 2022-27
The Vietnam Private Sector Development Partnerships (VPSDP) is delivered by the International Finance Corporation (IFC). The program supports Vietnam achieve its development objectives sustainably by promoting private sector development, transitioning to a green economy, supporting green financing and enhancing gender inclusion.
Related documents*
| Name of document | Year published | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Australia-World Bank Strategic Partnership (ABP) Phase 2 & The Vietnam Private Sector Development Partnership fact sheet | 2022 | Fact sheet |
Aus4Transport
$30 million, 2018-24
Through the Aus4Transport program, Australia is supporting Vietnam to develop the transport sector by providing early stage project preparation. Australia is prioritising multilateral development bank-financed projects to demonstrate the value of high quality project preparation in accelerating approval processes and reducing long-term maintenance costs. The project will develop national priority transport infrastructure projects to the point where they are ready to begin construction. Lessons from the preparation of these projects will inform policy reforms for the Ministry of Transport that will improve project preparation and help deliver value for money. Aus4Transport is managed by DT Global.
Related documents*
| Name of document | Year published | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Aus4Transport Investment Design | 2017 | Design |
| Aus4Transport – Mid-Term review report and management response | 2022 | Mid-term review report and management response |
| Aus4Transport fact sheet | 2022 | Fact sheet |
Aus4Innovation
$31.5 million, 2018-27
Aus4Innovation is supporting the Government of Vietnam to prepare for emerging challenges and technological transformation by building a stronger national innovation system. Key elements of the program include digital foresighting and mega trends analysis, a science commercialisation initiative, a competitive grants mechanism and a policy exchange program. CSIRO is the implementing partner.
Related documents*
| Name of document | Year published | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Aus4Innovation fact sheet | 2022 | Fact sheet |
| Vietnam Aus4Innovation Independent Review | 2022 | Evaluation |
Related link
Aus4Skills
$86.4 million, 2016-25
Aus4Skills (formerly Vietnam-Australia Human Resources Development Partnership) is supporting Vietnam to access and use high-level professional and technical knowledge, skills and competencies to contribute to the country's sustainable economic and social development. The program is building enduring links with Australia. The program components include Australia Awards Scholarships in Vietnam, the Australian Alumni program in Vietnam, promoting industry linkages with vocational education and training, higher education capacity building, advancing women in leadership and the Vietnam Australia Centre.
Support is delivered using a range of skills development tools: Australia Awards Scholarships, Australia Awards short courses and other informal learning opportunities such as workshops, study tours and technical assistance. Aus4Skills seeks to empower and provide opportunities for women, people with disabilities, people from remote areas and ethnic minorities. Aus4Skills is managed by Tetra Tech.
Related documents*
| Name of document | Year published | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Vietnam Aus4Skills: Mid Term Review and management response | 2019 | Mid Term Review and management response |
| Aus4Skills fact sheet | 2022 | Fact sheet |
| Aus4Skills Phase 2 Mid-Term Review | 2024 | Report and Management Response |
Related link
Aus4Equality
Aus4Equality is an umbrella initiative that includes the following:
- The Gender Responsive Equitable Agriculture and Tourism (GREAT) program (2017-27) that improves the social and economic status of ethnic minority women in the northwest of Vietnam through engagement in tourism and agriculture.
- Technical support for revision of Vietnam's Gender Equality Law (2022-25) so the Law is more inclusive of all genders and gender expressions; and define, prevent and control all forms of gender-based violence and harmful practises.
- Livelihoods recovery for women in southern Vietnam impacted by COVID-19 (2022-24).
| Name of document | Year published | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Aus4Equality fact sheet | 2022 | Fact sheet |
Gender-Responsive Equitable Agriculture and Tourism (GREAT)
$67.4 million, 2017-27
The goal of the Gender-Responsive Equitable Agriculture and Tourism (GREAT) program is: Women, particularly ethnic minority women living in Lao Cai and Son La, are empowered through their economic engagement, and experience greater gender equality at home, in the workplace, within communities, and through responsive governments.
The program focused on agriculture and tourism to identify specific sectors that lend themselves to opportunities for women's economic empowerment and to work with multiple stakeholders to address constraints and generate opportunities. The enabling environment for women's empowerment will be strengthened by targeted policy and institutional engagement with provincial, district and commune-level government agencies. There is a need to continue and scale up outreach and work within communities to shift social attitudes around gender equality, with a view to enhancing women's participation in decision-making and leadership, promoting a more equal division of unpaid work, and reducing gender-based violence (GBV).
The Provincial People's Committees of Lao Cai and Son La are GREAT's primary government counterparts.
GREAT is managed by Cowater International.
Related documents*
| Name of document | Year published | Type |
|---|---|---|
| Gender-Responsive Equitable Agriculture and Tourism (GREAT) Investment Design Document | 2016 | Design |
| GREAT Mid Term Review and Management Response | 2022 | Mid Term Review and management response |
Related links
Her Turn
$0.83 million, 2018-26
Australia is working with KOTO (Know One, Teach One) to support vocational training and entrepreneurial skills development for disadvantaged rural and ethnic minority women in Vietnam. The program objectives include:
- Empower disadvantaged and ethnic women economically by providing hospitality and entrepreneurship skills, employment and long-term career development opportunities
- Empower female hospitality professionals through leadership development.
Related links
Investing in Women
$12 million, 2017-23 (contribution towards $102 million initiative)
Investing in Women is a multi-country Australian Government initiative in Southeast Asia that seeks to accelerate women’s economic empowerment through increased and equitable opportunities in the private sector, contributing to inclusive, sustainable economic recovery and growth in targeted countries, including Vietnam.
Related links
Transforming Rice Value Chains for Climate Resilient Sustainable Development in the Mekong Delta (TRVC)
$17 million, 2023-28
The Transforming Rice Value Chains for Climate Resilient Sustainable Development in the Mekong Delta (TRVC) project aims to support a transition to low-carbon and climate resilient agricultural landscape and livelihoods in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta. Using a Pay-for-Results (PfRs) mechanism, the project incentivises and attracts the participation of private enterprises in the rice value chain, aiming to scale-up innovative technologies to achieve higher economic outcomes for smallholder farmers and rice value chain actors, improve rice quality and inclusive social values while reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and mitigating environmental footprints as co-benefits.
Related link
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