Why is it difficult for cooperatives to access digital transformation?

With more than 22,500 agricultural cooperatives, improving their digital technology application capacity is imperative if they do not want to be left out of the game in an increasingly competitive environment. However, due to many barriers, most agricultural cooperatives are still having to "swim alone" in the digital transformation wave.

Many cooperatives boost product consumption by selling agricultural products via livestream.

Only about 15% of cooperative staff know how to use software.

Sharing about the difficulties in approaching digital transformation, Ms. Mai Thi Thuy Trang - Director of Tai Thinh Phat Farm Cooperative ( Ca Mau ) shared that members of the Cooperative know that using warehouse management software and member management will be more effective than books, but a basic solution set also costs tens, even hundreds of millions of VND. For the Cooperative, that cost is a burden. Not to mention, the software needs to be maintained and upgraded annually, which is a maintenance cost that members must calculate.

Similarly, according to Ms. Tran Thi Thu Lan - Director of Ban Quyen Agricultural Service Production Cooperative (Trang Dinh commune, Lang Son province), digital transformation opens up new opportunities for mountainous people. Thanks to the technology platform, people can promote and introduce local agricultural products to domestic and foreign consumers without leaving the village. Notably, thanks to the support of the functional sector, the products of the cooperative have been introduced on many social networking platforms such as TikTok, Zalo, Facebook, Shopee, ... contributing to expanding the consumption market. However, Ms. Lan also admitted that accessing and operating digital technology still has many difficulties.

“We are just starting to get acquainted with technology, and are still limited in human resources, marketing skills and market information. Therefore, the Cooperative hopes to continue to receive attention and support from all levels and sectors - especially the Vietnam Cooperative Alliance in training, educating, and helping people in mountainous areas effectively apply digital platforms,” Ms. Lan suggested.

Regarding the progress of digital transformation of cooperatives, the representative of the Department of Digital Transformation - Ministry of Agriculture and Environment (NNMT) also acknowledged that the digitalization process of the cooperative sector still faces many difficulties. Information technology infrastructure in remote areas is still weak, Internet coverage is not stable. Digital human resources are still limited when only about 15% of cooperative staff are proficient in using computers and software, less than 10% have specialized IT staff. Lack of data and interoperability standards between platforms makes data sharing and exploitation still limited. Financial resources of most cooperatives are still weak, unable to invest in equipment, software or digital infrastructure. In addition, awareness is not uniform when many cooperatives consider digital transformation as "auxiliary", a formality to meet criteria but not yet considered this as a long-term strategy. Without a synchronous solution, the risk of a "digital gap" between pioneering cooperatives and the rest of the agricultural sector will grow, affecting the national digital transformation process.

Building a common digital platform for cooperatives

According to Associate Professor Dr. Dao The Anh - Chairman of the Vietnam Association for Rural Development Science, farmers and cooperative members have very good production capacity but market access still faces many difficulties due to the ineffective application of digital transformation. Therefore, the State needs to focus on solving financial and infrastructure problems. This includes establishing a specialized digital transformation support fund for cooperatives with preferential interest rates, simple procedures, and support for software subscription costs instead of requiring outright purchase, helping to reduce the initial financial burden. At the same time, investing in upgrading telecommunications infrastructure in rural areas and supporting cooperatives in installing necessary equipment is essential.

Faced with difficulties from cooperatives, Mr. Le Duc Thinh - Director of the Department of Economic Cooperation and Rural Development (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) said that the digital transformation process in agriculture, especially in the collective economic sector and cooperatives, is still slow compared to many countries in the region such as China, Thailand or EU countries.

In China, a national digital agricultural platform has been deployed to every cooperative and farm, linked to the local management system. In Thailand, an electronic traceability system is mandatory for agricultural exports.

Meanwhile, Vietnam still does not have a synchronous digital traceability system, which makes us slower in the integration process. However, practical requirements are forcing Vietnamese agriculture to shift to a digital ecosystem model.

To build a digital ecosystem in agriculture, Mr. Thinh said that the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is currently implementing many activities such as: Building a shared digital platform for the cooperative sector and collective economy, expected to be completed and put into operation from June 2026. This platform will connect data on traceability, growing area codes, production standards, logistics, and electronic contracts. In addition, it will coordinate with international partners, especially Japan, to learn from the digital ecosystem model of the Japan Agricultural Cooperative Federation (JA)...

In order for cooperatives to access digital transformation, Ms. Cao Xuan Thu Van - President of the Vietnam Cooperative Alliance said that agricultural cooperatives currently have not fully benefited from appropriate support policies. "In addition to budget support, it is necessary to increase preferential credit packages and have policies to encourage effective investment from the private sector in high-tech agriculture. In addition, it is necessary to encourage and support the development of smart agricultural models, models of applying high technology to production, and building smart agricultural value chains, from production to consumption" - Ms. Van suggested.

Le Bao

Source: https://daidoanket.vn/vi-sao-hop-tac-xa-kho-tiep-can-chuyen-doi-so.html