Vietnam

Status

Vietnam is in the process of developing a NAP, to be published by 2022. (UPDATE: the new expected date for the NAP launch is the second quarter of 2023, a first draft is expected to be released around March 2023).

The momentum for #RespBiz is amazingly high in ????????. 2days working on #HaLong #roadmap for #NAP on #RespBiz has achieved great agreement on MOJ drafing & proposing #NAP to Gov by 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣2️⃣. Participating ministries, eg MOLISA-MOIT-MONRE-SBV-VGCL strongly #committed to #NAPProcess. pic.twitter.com/fWVyKOM5JC

— Harpreet Kaur (@hkaur0304) November 27, 2020

 

Process

In July 2018, the Ministry of Justice of Vietnam requested UNDP’s support to develop a road map to advance responsible business conduct in Vietnam. UNDP B+HR has provided support in Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam to feed momentum and ensure best practices on NAP implementation are considered.

“At the request of the Government of Vietnam, UNDP will provide assistance to draft a “Road Map to Business and Human Rights.” This request signals one of the most important opportunities to position another ASEAN country on the same track as Indonesia and Thailand. The appointment of a clear focal point for Business and Human Rights within the Ministry of Justice and the workshop planned for March on the road-map, also evidences encouraging progress. Despite these developments, UNDP anticipates a slow and lengthy process. UNDP is investing in advocacy efforts to have Business and Human Rights as a subject in focus of the recommendations which will be presented to Vietnam during the UPR process in January. A recommendation on BHR presented and accepted by the Government of Vietnam would be a game changer and significantly facilitate project implementation in this country.”

On 6 April 2022, a second national consultation workshop to promote responsible business practices in Vietnam was organised by the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) and UNDP Vietnam, with the support of the Swedish Government. The event built from the first consultation that was organized in 2020, a Preliminary Assessment of the Regulatory Framework on Responsible Business Practices in Viet Nam, and a national baseline assessment (NBA).

 

One more step ahead in the direction of getting a #NAP approved in #Vietnam. Great conversation today with MoJ on next steps. @UNDPVietNam with support from 🇸🇪and 🇯🇵@SwedeninVN @MofaJapan_en @BizHRAsia_UNDP @Akikosato711 https://t.co/oy6SmtBouN

— Livio Sarandrea (@liviosarandrea) April 6, 2022

The workshop brought together a number of experts and key stakeholders, including the Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Justice, the First Secretary of the Embassy of Sweden, the UNDP Global Lead on Business and Human Rights and the UNDP Resident Representative. Legal experts took the opportunity to present findings and recommendations that arose from the recently completed NBA. As stated by the UNDP, the discussions focused on “recommendations for developing the NAP and streamlining legal frameworks for responsible business practices. Following this, key stakeholders and participants were invited to put forward their own recommendations”.

In terms of timeline, representatives from the MOJ and UNDP proposed to issue the first draft of the NAP to the public for consultation, before presenting it to the prime minister in 2023.

National Baseline Assessment (NBA)

Vietnam’s National Baseline Assessment is being undertaken in a two-tier process. A “Preliminary Assessment of the Regulatory Framework on Responsible Business Practice in Viet Nam” was published in Vietnamese and English by the Ministry of Justice on October 19, 2020. It was supported by the Swedish government and the UNDP Viet Nam. The NBA was finalised in 2022 but is not publicly available.

As the first phase of the NBA, the Preliminary Assessment of the Regulatory Framework on Responsible Business Practice aimed at identifying alignments and gaps between the Vietnamese regulatory framework and the UNGPs. The Preliminary Assessment was conducted primarily through desktop research of legal and regulatory material with a focus to draft recommendations to the development of the NAP.

The  Preliminary Assessment was developed around five axis:

1. Corporate and Investment Law
2. Labour Rights
3. Business in the Community
4. Responsible Business Practice and Vulnerable Groups
5. Access to Remedy

Likewise, it sets out five research questions in its methodology:

1. What laws, regulations and policies have been adopted that have the aim or effect of regulating business conduct with respect to salient responsible business practice issues in Viet Nam?
2. What laws, regulations and policies are in place to protect specific vulnerable groups in Viet Nam from adverse business-related impacts?
3. What State-based judicial and non-judicial, and non-state-based, grievance mechanisms are available in Viet Nam to provide effective remedy to victims of business-related harm?
4. How have such regulations and policies aligned with Viet Nam’s international commitments on responsible business practice?
5. What areas should be prioritized to revise regulation and policy to strengthen alignment with international commitments on responsible business practice?

Several stakeholders consultations were undertaken during the development of the Preliminary Assessment. UNDP Viet Nam coordinated a multi-stakeholder Technical Advisory Group (TAG) for that purpose.