Viet Nam is taking an important step toward shaping a national roadmap for decent jobs and universal social protection under the Global Accelerator on Jobs and Social Protection for Just Transitions, with support from the Joint SDG Fund and United Nations partners.
A technical meeting convened by the Institute of State Organizational and Labour Sciences under the Ministry of Home Affairs brought together government experts, UN agencies, and technical specialists to review findings from a national assessment and discuss priority directions for the country’s draft roadmap. The meeting marks a key milestone in translating global commitments on just transitions into a country owned and actionable pathway aligned with Viet Nam’s development goals.
Opening the discussions on behalf of the UN team, Felix Weidenkaff, Officer in Charge of International Labour Organization (ILO) Viet Nam, highlighted the importance of close collaboration with national institutions. He underscored that the Global Accelerator supports countries in creating decent jobs, particularly in the green, digital, and care economies, while expanding access to social protection for all.
“Viet Nam has achieved remarkable economic and social progress over recent decades, yet faces growing challenges posed by climate change, an ageing population, rapid digitalization, and the urgent shift toward a green and net zero economy,” Weidenkaff noted. “These transformations offer tremendous opportunities for decent work creation, but also demand policies that ensure equality, inclusion, and adequate social protection for all workers and communities.”
The meeting examined a comprehensive assessment led by ISOL, which mapped strengths and policy gaps across Viet Nam’s employment and social protection systems as the country navigates demographic change, digital transformation, and climate action. Participants discussed how integrated policies can better link job creation, income security, and inclusion, which are core principles of the Global Accelerator.
Bui Ton Hien, Vice Director General of ISOL, presented the draft roadmap, which proposes coordinated policy directions across labour markets, social protection systems, and just transition objectives. Discussions emphasized the need to embed gender equality, address the needs of vulnerable groups, and mobilize sustainable financing by combining public resources with private investment to support implementation at scale.
From the Joint SDG Fund perspective, the process illustrates how catalytic financing can help countries move from analysis to action by convening diverse actors, aligning policies across sectors, and strengthening national ownership of reforms that might otherwise remain fragmented.
The recommendations emerging from the technical meeting will feed into revisions of the draft roadmap and inform a broader stakeholder consultation scheduled for the following week. That consultation will bring together line ministries, workers’ and employers’ organizations, development partners, academia, and civil society to validate priorities and agree on concrete next steps.
“The meeting is not only a technical exercise,” Weidenkaff emphasized. “It is an opportunity to ensure the roadmap reflects shared priorities, integrates diverse perspectives, and aligns with Viet Nam’s vision for sustainable and inclusive growth.”
By advancing the Global Accelerator process with support from the Joint SDG Fund, the United Nations and its partners aim to help Viet Nam build a more resilient and inclusive world of work, where people can access decent jobs and reliable social protection as the country transitions toward a greener and more sustainable future.
Original publication: https://www.ilo.org/resource/news/towards-roadmap-decent-jobs-and-social-protection-viet-nam%E2%80%99s-just
Note:
All joint programmes of the Joint SDG Fund are led by UN Resident Coordinators and implemented by the agencies, funds and programmes of the United Nations development system. With sincere appreciation for the contributions from the European Union and Governments of Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Monaco, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of Korea, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland for a transformative movement towards achieving the SDGs by 2030.
