HCM City (VNA) - Agricultural businesses are facing increasinginternational competition and must use science, technology and innovation toimprove their productivity and competitiveness, experts said at a workshop in HoChi Minh City on September 27.

DavidMonck, innovation facilitator at Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific andIndustrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), said that unlocking results frompublicly funded research for innovation that delivers economic, social andenvironmental benefits was a challenge facing agricultural innovationsystems around the world.

Speakingat the “Unlocking Innovations in Agriculture for the Private Sector” workshop,Monck said that publicly funded agriculture and food researchoutputs required “Science Commercialisation Partnership” approaches to fitthe diverse nature of the agri-food industry. 

Theseapproaches ranged from traditional technology transfer models appliedto agribusiness to more collaborative partnerships with a variety ofagri-food industry and broader system actors. These approaches were beingimplemented globally with varying degrees of success in differentcontexts.

He saidthat it was important to determine what works for the agriculture and foodsector in Vietnam and how to leverage it to enhance innovationcapacity. “It is key to build an agricultural ecosystem applying a digitalbase to support the competitiveness of Vietnamese agriculture.” 

"Theagriculture and food sector plays a critical role in achieving food andnutrition security, poverty reduction and environmental sustainability,"he noted.

ShaunFitzgerald, consul for economics and politics at the Australian Consulatein HCM City, said the workshop aimed to identify innovationchallenges affecting the competitiveness of theagricultural industry.

Pham DucNghiem, Deputy Director for the National Agency for Technology,Entrepreneurship and Commercialisation Development (NATEC) under the VietnameseMinistry of Science and Technology, said that opportunities for researchto address these challenges would also be discussed. 

Suchopportunities would be explored in collaboration withappropriate research expertise to develop a solution for industryassociation members, he added.

Australiahas a successful history of supporting public-private partnership modelsto enhance research activity in agriculture and increase businesscompetitiveness. More than 3.3 billion AUS has been invested in agriculturalinnovation by public and private sectors.

Vietnamand Australia have been partners in innovation for more than 25 years, withresearch programmes spanning agriculture, water management, disaster resilienceand space science.

One ofthese, Aus4Innovation, helps Vietnam develop a nationalinnovation system and pilot new models in areas where Australia hasexperience and advantages. 

Theprogramme will support Vietnam’s most important industries, includingagriculture and production, as they modernise and embrace opportunities ofthe Industry 4.0 era that will ensure future productivity and prosperity forthe country. 

As partof the Aus4Innovation programme, the Science CommercialisationPartnership will support a number of innovation partnerships inagriculture and food. Aus4Innovation is delivered throughAustralia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation.

Accordingto experts, the next wave of digital technologies has the potential totransform Vietnam into Asia’s next high-performing economy and to raise livingstandards over the coming decades. But to sustain high growth, Vietnamwill need to overcome substantial challenges. The workforce needs to upskill,especially as jobs become automated across agriculture and manufacturingsectors. 

The eventwas held by the Association of Food Transparency, Australia’s CommonwealthScientific and Industrial Research Organisation and the Department of Foreign Affairsand Trade of Australia./.