11:24:37 AM | 12/4/2025
The 2025 Program on Benchmarking and Announcing Sustainable Companies in Vietnam (CSI 2025 Program), organized by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), marks its 10th consecutive year of implementation under the government’s direction. This year’s event is especially meaningful as it coincides with the 15th anniversary of the Vietnam Business Council for Sustainable Development (VBCSD), established by VCCI to promote responsible corporate governance and alignment with global sustainability standards.
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Nguyen Quang Vinh, Vice President of VCCI and Chairman of VBCSD, emphasized that the 10-year journey of the CSI Program reflects Vietnam’s consistent commitment and enduring efforts to advance sustainable corporate governance. As international Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) standards increasingly become mandatory, the role of CSI has become more evident. Strengthening the “G” (Governance) element of ESG is recognized as a key foundation that enables businesses to build resilient management systems, forming the core of their sustainable development strategies.
“When a company has strong governance, it can truly enhance its competitiveness, improve resilience, and maintain long-term adaptability,” he noted.
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Aligning with national strategic resolutions
CSI 2025 Program is being implemented in alignment with newly issued resolutions of the Politburo, particularly Resolution 68 on private sector development and Resolution 57 on breakthroughs in science, technology, and innovation. These two resolutions set strategic directions for the national economy, emphasizing the private sector as a key growth engine and science and technology as pillars for productivity and competitiveness.
Resolution 68 calls for building a strong, responsible, and sustainable business community while encouraging the recognition of exemplary entrepreneurs and enterprises that operate efficiently, sustainably, and with a strong sense of social responsibility. This is closely aligned with the practical role of CSI, which helps enterprises assess and improve their governance capacity in line with national policy objectives.
In line with the spirit of Resolution 57, CSI 2025 Program has undergone significant updates in its evaluation framework, encouraging businesses to integrate science, technology, and innovation into both management and production. These changes reflect a reform-oriented mindset while expanding the program’s impact, helping Vietnamese enterprises move closer to international standards of sustainable development.
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CSI 2025: streamlined, innovative, and forward-looking
A key highlight of the CSI 2025 Program is the newly streamlined and significantly updated sustainability index. The new framework consists of 145 criteria, down from 153 in 2024, organized into seven groups: Corporate Information, Organization and Human Resources, Material Issues, Three-Year Performance, Governance, Environment, and Labor and Social Affairs.
The weighting between groups has also been adjusted, with 59% compliance indicators (C) and 41% advanced indicators (A). This change reflects a shift in focus from simple compliance to greater innovation and creativity in sustainable business practices. According to Nguyen Tien Huy, Director of the Office for Business Sustainable Development (SD4B-VCCI), increasing the innovation bonus to 10% of the total score will help enterprises strengthen their competitive edge and improve adaptability amid changing conditions.
Notably, CSI 2025 Program introduces for the first time a simplified version designed for small and micro enterprises, featuring 87 criteria across six groups, of which 84% are compliance indicators. The goal is to help these businesses begin by meeting regulatory standards and gradually move toward a more sustainable business model.
For medium and large enterprises, the full version includes a new requirement on Material Issue Analysis, which encourages companies to identify sustainability factors directly impacting their strategy, thereby enabling more proactive and meaningful development planning.
| Over the past nine editions, the Corporate Sustainability Index (CSI) has attracted more than 4,000 participating enterprises and has been adopted by over 10,000 companies as a tool for evaluation and strategic planning. Marking its 10th anniversary, the 2025 program expands its scope to honor 100 exemplary sustainable businesses nationwide, including the Top 10 in Manufacturing and the Top 10 in Trade and Services. The organizers will also commend enterprises that have maintained excellence for 10 consecutive years and introduce special awards highlighting emerging sustainability trends. |
A major advancement in CSI 2025 Program is the integration of technology and artificial intelligence (AI) throughout the entire implementation process. The online submission platform has been redesigned for greater transparency, convenience, and user-friendliness for both participating businesses and the evaluation council. Notably, AI now replaces the traditional Index Handbook, guiding enterprises through each criterion’s requirements and significantly reducing processing time.
According to Nguyen Tien Huy, transparency and objectivity remain the program’s core principles. All submissions are independently reviewed by a council of experts and representatives from relevant ministries and agencies, and all company information is kept strictly confidential.
By Huong Ly, Vietnam Business Forum
Vietnamese
