Vietnam is on the move. With the goal of transitioning from a lower middle-income country to a high-income country by 2045, economic indicators are looking positive. Yet poverty rates, especially among rural and ethnic minority populations, remain persistently high, and recent economic shocks and climate change pose significant obstacles to Vietnam’s development ambitions.
Addressing these challenges requires further investment in human capital, institutional reform, technological advancement, climate change adaptation, and inclusive strategies. Gender equality, in particular, is seen as key to both economic growth and sustainable development.
The GREAT program has supported Vietnam’s development efforts by contributing to national and provincial strategies in agriculture and tourism through the National Target Programs (NTPs) in its first phase. The program’s second phase focuses on harvesting the lessons of those current NTPs and providing recommendations for the design and approach of NTPs in the 2026-2030 period, with a strong emphasis on market-based approaches, women’s economic empowerment and gender equality.