On April 3rd, in Ho Chi Minh City, Flanders Investment & Trade (FIT) hosted the seminar “Vietnam-Flanders: Investing in Climate Resilient Partnerships”. Organised during the State Visit to Vietnam of Their Majesties the King and Queen of Belgium to Vietnam (March 31-April 4, 2025), the seminar highlighted the crucial role of public-private partnerships in promoting sustainable, climate-resilient development.
Bringing together representatives from Vietnam's Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, the Flemish Minister for Brussels and Media Cieltje Van Achter, research and civil society organisations and the business community, the seminar created a platform to foster partnerships for climate action - with a focus on technological and innovative solutions in agriculture.
Among the initiatives presented, Mr. Roland Vanhoegaerden from BENEO-Remy introduced the project "An Innovative Value Chain for Promoting Sustainable Rice Farming Practices in the Mekong Delta". This new initiative is part of the Flanders International Climate Action Programme (FICAP), funded by the Government of Flanders. The project is a collaboration between Rikolto, BENEO-Remy, and CarbonFarm Technology. A delegation from Rikolto - Mr. Chris Claes (International Executive Director), Ms. Germaine Furaha (Global Operations Director), and Ms. Catur Utami Dewi (Global Rice Programme Director) - attended the event together with representatives from CarbonFarm to demonstrate their shared commitment to promoting sustainable agriculture and climate action.
Launched in March 2024, the 34-month project aims to scale up a sustainable value chain model based on the application of the Sustainable Rice Platform (SRP) standard for rice cultivation and marketing of sustainable rice, contributing to both climate adaptation, mitigation in the region and the strengthening of farmers’ livelihoods.
Specifically, the project focuses on three main objectives:
“Consumers are increasingly demanding products made with ingredients sourced from sustainable farming practices. Meeting this demand starts at the farm level: by applying the SRP standard in rice production, greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced by up to 30% while improving their incomes. Thanks to Rikolto's long-standing experience working directly with farmers in Vietnam, we can build effective and trustworthy relationships with producers, a crucial element to successfully driving this transition.”
The seminar was marked an important step in strengthening ties between Vietnam and Flanders, and between the public and private sectors, in the common pursuit of climate-resilient food systems. The engagement of different actors and mindsets highlighted a growing understanding that transforming agriculture in the face of climate change also requires joint action across sectors and borders.
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