Integrating Sustainable Development into National Policy: The Practice of Vietnam

Vo Thanh Son

Published in ‘Global Changes and Sustainable Development in Asian Emerging Market Economies Vol. 2’

Abstract

By 2015, the United Nations have adopted the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda with 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to further promote sustainable development in the world, with particular emphasis on the importance of integrating sustainable development into each nation’s development policy. This paper is an attempt to review the process of sustainable development in Vietnam in terms of institutional arrangement and related policies. By reviewing the framework for integrating sustainable development dimensions into development policies in the world, the paper assesses the initial results of integrating sustainable development into national socio-economic development strategies and plans by the goals and priorities of sustainable development as well as by its dimensions or components in Vietnam. The paper also addresses the main challenges and constraints as the shortage of technical guidance to integrate sustainable development into development policies and the lack of resources needed.