The year 2023 marked significant strides by CGIAR in its mission to transform food, land, and water systems amidst the global climate crisis. This year’s report emphasizes nutrition, health, and food security, highlighting numerous innovations and collaborations that have driven positive change. The report also underscores the critical need for increased investment in agricultural research to achieve sustainable and scalable results.

On August 08-09, 2024, Can Tho University, in collaboration with the Bioversity International Alliance and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) of Dong Thap Province, the Vietnam Academy of Agricultural Sciences (VAAS), the National Institute of Nutrition, the Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development, and the University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Can Tho, organized a training program to enhance the knowledge of related departments in Dong Thap on food systems transformation towards healthy and sustainable diets and promoting agroecological transformation. This training activity is sponsored by the One CGIAR initiative "Sustainable Healthy Diets through Food Systems Transformation - SHiFT."

The food systems programme is an annual ministry-level conference, first held in 2017, that is a platform for dialogue to drive change in the food system.

From May 14-16, Danish Minister of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries Jacob Jensen led a high-level delegation to visit and work in Vietnam. The goal of this visit focuses on promoting high-level policy dialogue with Vietnamese partners on sustainable food production and the development of efficient, resource-saving supply chains.

The conference this year has been hosted by Việt Nam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development from Monday until Thursday with the theme ‘The transformation we need: Emerging from global crises by shaping sustainable, resilient, healthy, and inclusive food systems”.

Vietnam has implemented the "National Action Plan on Food Systems Transformation toward Transparency, Responsibility, and Sustainability until 2030". The plan, issued by the Prime Minister at the end of March, aims to turn Vietnam into a transparent, responsible, sustainable food producer and supplier to ensure food security and nutrition for its 100 million people and contribute to world food security.

Vietnam aims to transform its food systems in a transparent, responsible and sustainable manner. To help achieve this, the new CGIAR research initiative “Sustainable Healthy Diets through Food Systems Transformation” (SHiFT) is working with the emerging multi-stakeholder platforms in the country in order to support the planning and implementation of specific activities. This article demonstrates success already achieved.

Sustainable food systems are those food systems that aim at achieving food and nutrition security and healthy diets while limiting negative environmental impacts and improving socio-economic welfare.

Vietnam’s food system is complex, encompassing all the people and processes from the farm all the way through processing, transport, sales, and consumption. For those studying food systems, particularly as they pertain to healthy diets and nutrition, grasping an overview can be a significant challenge.

9 November, Hanoi - the collaborative platform on Markets and Agriculture Linkages for Cities In Asia (MALICA), in partnership with the Sustainable Healthy Diets through Food System Transformations (SHiFT) initiative, led a consultative meeting to address the objectives of the Vietnam's National Action Plan for Food System Transformation (NAP). In line with the NAP’s vision, the agenda facilitated multi-sectoral collaboration, aiming to improve Vietnam’s food distribution, policy, and consumption patterns, ultimately contributing to the nation's sustainable food future.