Digital transformation: "golden opportunity" for Cooperatives

In the context of a rapidly developing digital economy, digital transformation (DT) is opening up breakthrough opportunities for the collective economic sector, especially cooperatives (HTX). Not only helping to overcome limitations of small scale, manual management or difficulty accessing the market, DI has become the "golden key" to improving productivity, quality and value of Vietnamese agricultural products. However, the biggest barrier today lies in the human factor: many cadres and members of cooperatives still lack the skills, mindset and basic knowledge to apply technology.

Recognizing this bottleneck, recently, many specialized training programs on digital transformation have been widely deployed, helping cooperatives access knowledge from basic to advanced.

Notable activities include the Trade and Investment Promotion Center – Vietnam Cooperative Alliance (VCA). VCA coordinates with ministries, branches, technology enterprises and e-commerce platforms to organize large-scale training. Training courses with TikTok Vietnam, Vietnam Post Corporation, etc. have provided practical technology application skills, especially through livestream sales sessions – a consumption channel that is opening up many opportunities for agricultural products in remote and isolated areas.

Many farmers and cooperative members have improved their digital skills by participating in training courses.

The current CDS training system is designed according to three main pillars:

First, Transforming digital leadership mindset: Courses such as "Digital Leadership and Cooperative Digital Strategy 4.0" help managers understand the role of data, build a suitable digital transformation roadmap and make decisions based on analysis instead of experience. This is considered an important foundation step in innovating cooperative governance.

Second, Application of digital software for internal management: Many cooperatives are guided to deploy agricultural management software, QR codes, Blockchain for traceability, accounting software and digital offices.

Notably, the cooperation between the Vietnam Cooperative Alliance and Sorimachi Vietnam Co., Ltd. in training on WACA accounting software and Facefarm Production Diary has brought about remarkable results. WACA fully supports the specific accounting operations of cooperatives, automates interest calculation, capital contribution management, financial reporting... helping to replace manual recording and increase transparency. Training courses are held across three regions, attracting hundreds of trainees to participate in practice.

Third, Improve marketing and e-commerce capacity: The course "Multi-channel sales skills and digital branding" equips you with skills to operate stores on Shopee, Lazada, Alibaba and promote on TikTok, Facebook, and Reels. Expanding consumption channels through e-commerce is helping Vietnamese agricultural products access domestic and foreign markets faster and more effectively.

A series of cooperatives have proven that digital transformation brings practical value. In Gia Lai , Nam Yang Cooperative, after training and applying digital supply chain management, reduced management costs by 15% and increased average selling price by 30% thanks to direct sales through international e-commerce channels.

Luc Ngan Xanh Cooperative (Bac Ninh) has made a breakthrough thanks to its livestreaming skills and e-commerce packaging. Through livestreams alone, the Cooperative has sold hundreds of tons of lychees, with revenue increasing nearly 2.5 times compared to traditional methods.

In internal management, Rach Lop Agricultural Cooperative (Vinh Long) is a typical example of successful digitalization. The implementation of WACA and related tools helps to make books transparent and optimize financial management. Thanks to that, the Cooperative has built 3 4-star OCOP products and revenue has exceeded 9 billion VND in recent years.

Large-scale events such as the livestream session "Agricultural products to the city 2025" organized by VCA in collaboration with TikTok and Vietnam Post continue to open up effective consumption channels for cooperatives, especially for agricultural products in disadvantaged areas.

Mr. Nong Van Thach, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Ba Dinh Agricultural Cooperative (Ca Mau), said that the application of technology and digital techniques in production – from digitalizing rice-shrimp diaries, crop management, to QR codes for product transparency – has helped the Cooperative reduce input costs, improve productivity and increase income for members. At the same time, the Cooperative proactively participates in training courses to improve the capacity of its staff, meeting the increasing demands of the market, especially the export market.

In reality, digital transformation is not only a trend but also an inevitable path for cooperatives to develop sustainably. Intensive training courses, the support of management agencies and technology enterprises are creating a strong driving force to help Vietnamese cooperatives narrow the digital gap, improve competitiveness and affirm the value of Vietnamese agricultural products in the global market.

Center for Science and Technology Communication

Source: https://mst.gov.vn/chuyen-doi-so-co-hoi-vang-cua-hop-tac-xa-197251119005645903.htm