Green logistics applications help businesses meet environmental criteria, improve competitiveness in import and export and achieve sustainable growth.

Department of Industry and Trade of Can Tho City, Vietnam - Asia Net Zero Science and Cooperation Center (VANZA) and JGL Vietnam; coordinated to organize the Workshop "Green Logistics - improving the competitiveness of import-export enterprises in the Mekong Delta"; with the participation of nearly 300 businesses in the Mekong Delta, southern provinces and Korean and Singaporean businesses in the fields of logistics and export.

Mr. Ha Vu Son, Director of the City Department of Industry and Trade. Can Tho.

Speaking at the opening of the conference, Mr. Ha Vu Son, Director of the City Department of Industry and Trade. Can Tho said that green logistics has become an inevitable trend and a goal that every country is aiming for. Green logistics not only contributes to environmental protection and minimizes negative impacts of transportation and warehousing activities, but also brings long-term economic benefits and enhances the image and reputation of businesses. Applying green logistics to business will help businesses meet environmental criteria, improve competitiveness and sustainable growth, making an important contribution to import and export activities.

"In particular, for businesses in the Mekong Delta region, according to statistics, the cost of logistics activities accounts for about 16.8%, contributing 5-6% of GDP; if businesses understand correctly, The role of green logistics will be of great significance to the process of improving capacity for exported goods," Director of Can Tho Department of Industry and Trade emphasized.

Also according to Mr. Son, the total export turnover of the Mekong Delta is 68 billion USD, of which Can Tho ranks first in export turnover. Every year, Can Tho exports 2.2 billion USD, of which 30% is revenue from rice export. In the near future, this city will expand the airport into a large international airport with 10-15 million passengers/year and more than 10 million tons of goods/year. From those opportunities, green logistics solutions will contribute to making the most and effective use of the economic development of the Mekong Delta in particular and the country in general.

Mr. Sang - Hoon Lee, Chairman of the Korean Government Energy Agency

Attending the seminar, Mr. Sang-Hoon Lee, Chairman of the Korea Energy Agency (KEA) said; As the climate crisis intensifies worldwide and global energy markets become unstable, the need to establish energy security and carbon neutrality is growing.

In recent years, interest in green logistics has increased rapidly worldwide. As the importance of sustainable development and environmental protection increases; The logistics industry is also introducing environmentally friendly transportation methods such as electric and hybrid vehicles to reduce carbon emissions and green logistics is a key factor in building sustainable supply chains.

"Korea and Vietnam can discuss this international agenda together and today's event will be a step forward in the long journey towards carbon neutrality," Mr. Sang-Hoo Lee hoped.

At the conference, experts all said that, in the general development trend of the world economy towards green, clean and sustainable; Green logistics is no longer just a trend but has become an inevitable requirement to improve competitiveness and brand image towards more sustainable and comprehensive development in business activities; trade of import-export enterprises in particular and the business community in general.

Also discussing, delegates focused on discussing specific solutions on green logistics including the use of renewable energy, reducing carbon emissions, and improving transportation and warehousing technology. Green logistics requires sweeping changes across the entire supply chain, from transportation and warehouse management to packaging and packaging. Domestic enterprises must promote innovation, creativity, and digital transformation; Strongly deploy green logistics, smart logistics and logistics to effectively serve the import and export of goods.

The logistics industry with an average growth rate of about 14-16%/year is forced to go green as demands from international partners, buyers and consumers are set higher every day. Companies in the industry must find every way to reduce emissions and become carbon neutral if they do not want to lose orders. Currently, many of the world's major Logistics Groups have gone ahead and implemented a roadmap to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and convert to green energy earlier than the roadmap of committed countries.

The workshop highlighted the role of green logistics in addition to the goal of reducing net emissions to 0% (net zero) that Vietnam committed to at COP 26; It is also an important premise and condition to help businesses improve their competitiveness in the global supply chain. Connecting businesses, sharing successful practical experiences of businesses applying green production and green logistics models.

Mr. Do Xuan Quang, Former Chairman of the Federation of Southeast Asian Forwarding Associations, former Chairman of Vietnam Logistics Service Business Association, Deputy General Director of Vietjet Aviation Joint Stock Company.

From the perspective of a manager with extensive experience in the industry, Mr. Do Xuan Quang shared: "With the logistics industry, ESG is concretized by the concept of green logistics. Green logistics governs all three economic, social and environmental goals simultaneously. These three goals do not exclude each other, but on the contrary, they reinforce each other and create premises for each other to develop. All efforts of green logistics help businesses meet increasing demands from the community and the market, but also create new opportunities and help strengthen their competitive position in the international market, making an important contribution to forming a positive business environment and contributing to promoting sustainable development at enterprises."

When those links are all "green", businesses will be able to improve production capacity and operating capacity, and at the same time form a green, sustainable ecosystem surrounding the business.

Mr. Do Xuan Quang emphasized: "The Government has policies to encourage green transformation, through national programs on green growth. However, besides the Government's macroeconomic and mechanism policies, the first thing to do is to change the perception of logistics workers and the business community about their roles; benefits and significance of green logistics to the development of individuals, businesses and society".

Mr. Desmond Gay - Chairman, JGL Group Singapore.

Mr. Desmond Gay - Chairman, JGL Singapore Group shared his experience in implementing green logistics: "We operate with a commitment to sustainable development according to ESG standards; Build bonded warehouses, central cold storage and other logistics infrastructure according to greening criteria, to support import-export businesses in the region to achieve optimal efficiency. And always strive to improve the impact of business activities on the environment and society; At the same time, we want to invest strongly in the field of sustainable green logistics in Vietnam, especially in Can Tho and the Mekong Delta region."

“In the sustainable development strategy and the transition to a greener economy, one of the important factors is green, clean, environmentally friendly production; Save energy and streamline production lines. Kido's success also comes from these transformations, especially the application of green logistics in exporting goods; meeting technical requirements for export to the EU and US markets", Mr. Ma Thanh Danh - Deputy General Director of KiDo Group shared.

Seminar "Green Logistics - a new direction for sustainable development and improving the competitiveness of import-export enterprises"

The highlight of the conference was the discussion "Green Logistics - a new direction for sustainable development and improving the competitiveness of import-export enterprises". Businesses also expressed their opinion that to promote the green transformation of the logistics industry, the Government considers having more policies to encourage; promote businesses towards green logistics development, especially small and medium enterprises. For example, there is a tax incentive mechanism, creating incentives and reducing costs for businesses, encouraging the use of alternative energy sources in road transport; Encourage changes in transportation methods according to the multi-modal transportation model, build carbon credits to protect and control greenhouse gas emissions...

From a business perspective, it is necessary to quickly build and supplement strategies to match the green and sustainable development orientation in current production and business activities. For businesses that are interested in investing in green logistics development, and have even identified green logistics development goals in their business strategy; It is necessary to regularly review the strategic content and implementation situation of green logistics development to make appropriate and practical adjustments.

Businesses also need to take advantage of the support, encouragement, and incentives of the Government and organizations to effectively utilize logistics infrastructure, creating competitive advantages in production, operations, and transportation. Promote the application of technology, develop new energy sources and use environmental protection means to promote clean and efficient development.

Within the framework of the conference, Professor Dong Hoon Hyun - Chairman of SEP Cooperatives Group. The unit prepares to invest in the first carbon neutral industrial park worth 200 million USD in Binh Duong; signed a cooperation agreement with Mr. Ho Quang Minh - Chairman of Vietnam Asia Net Zero Science and Cooperation Center (Vanza) on developing projects towards Net Zero in Vietnam; cooperation in new energy, eco-industrial park development, infrastructure development and financial support.

Source: Cong Thuong Newspaper