The kick-off ceremony for the 2025 CSI program

The program is organized by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and led by the Vietnam Business Council for Sustainable Development (VBCSD), in coordination with the Party Central Committee's Commission for Policies and Strategies, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor, and, for the first time this year, the expected participation of the Ministry of Finance.

The Corporate Sustainability Index (CSI) remains the official benchmark for evaluating corporate sustainability. In 2025, the program will recognize 100 sustainable businesses, including a Top 10 list for manufacturing and trade–services. To mark the program’s 10th anniversary, it will also honor companies with consistent placements in the Top 10 and Top 100 rankings.

Mr. Nguyen Quang Vinh – Vice President of VCCI, Chairman of VBCSD and Deputy Head of the Steering Committee for the CSI 2025 Program emphasized: “The year 2025 marks the 15th anniversary of VBCSD and the 10th year of implementing the CSI Program. We identified at an early stage that strengthening corporate governance capacity - the ‘G’ component within the ESG criteria - constitutes a fundamental cornerstone for the successful execution of sustainable development strategies. The CSI index and the CSI Program, which have been developed and implemented over the past decade, stand as testament to this steadfast commitment.”

Mr. Vinh said that the ethos of the CSI Program aligns with the private sector development priorities set out in 68-NQ/TW, adding that the recognition of efficient, sustainable, and socially responsible enterprises contributing to the community has been clearly affirmed, highlighting the program’s relevance and practical value in the current context.

During the ceremony, the CSI Program introduced the organizational regulations and operational structure, comprising the Steering Committee, the Evaluation Council, and the Secretariat. The program places particular emphasis on transparency, fairness, and impartiality through a stringent evaluation process involving three rounds of application screening based on the CSI index, validation by competent authorities, and final approval by the Steering Committee. The Evaluation Council is an independent body, comprising representatives from central government agencies, professional organizations, media institutions, and experts. All information provided by enterprises is guaranteed to be held in strict confidence.

The CSI 2025 Program has also been adjusted and updated to align with major recent policy directives, including Resolution 68 on private sector development, Resolution 57 on breakthroughs in science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation, as well as Resolutions 138 and 139 issued in May 2025. These updates are expected to significantly accelerate the sustainable development process within Vietnam’s business community.

The 2025 CSI is structured into seven main components: Corporate Information; Organizational Structure and Key Personnel; Analysis of Material Issues; Performance Indicators over the Past Three Years; Governance Index; Environmental Index; and Labor – Social Index. The total number of indicators has been streamlined to 145, a reduction of eight compared to 2024, comprising 85 core indicators (C – compliance-oriented, accounting for 59%) and 60 advanced indicators (A – reflecting practical initiatives, accounting for 41%).

According to Mr. Nguyen Tien Huy, Director of the Vietnam Business Office for Sustainable Development and Head of the Program Secretariat, the adjustment of the index structure reflects the organizers’ strategic focus. He said that, after a decade of implementation, there is a clear need to promote innovation in sustainable development practices. Increasing the weight of advanced indicators and raising the maximum bonus points for initiatives to 10% of the total score is intended to encourage businesses to move from a compliance mindset to proactively creating value.

Additionally, to broaden participation from the private sector, especially among small and micro enterprises, CSI 2025 introduces a streamlined version specifically tailored for this group. The simplified index comprises 87 indicators divided into six sections, with compliance indicators accounting for 84%. This approach makes the program more accessible to small businesses, while gradually familiarizing them with sustainable development requirements suited to their scale and resources.

For medium and large enterprises, a notable new feature of CSI 2025 is the inclusion of a “Material Issues Analysis” section. This helps businesses proactively identify strategic sustainability issues aligned with stakeholders’ expectations, thereby providing appropriate guidance to enhance adaptability, improve risk management effectiveness, and support long-term development.

A key highlight of the CSI 2025 Program is the intensified application of technology and artificial intelligence (AI) throughout the implementation process. This innovation aims to optimize the user experience for enterprises and enhance the program’s operational efficiency.

Specifically, the online application platform has been redesigned to be more user-friendly, ensuring transparency and convenience for both participating businesses and the independent Evaluation Council. Furthermore, the Secretariat has developed visual instructional videos that enable enterprises to easily understand the submission process and related regulations. These videos can be revisited multiple times, significantly reducing the workload for the program’s technical and administrative support teams.

Notably, instead of relying on an index handbook as in previous years, CSI 2025 employs AI to provide clear explanations of each indicator directly on the online platform. This feature helps businesses accurately and fully comprehend the requirements before submitting information, thereby improving data quality and increasing reliability throughout the evaluation process.

All business profile information will be systematically organized as interconnected data, ensuring confidentiality while facilitating easier participation in future assessment rounds. This also lays the foundation for enterprises to progressively develop sustainability reports when needed.

In 2025, the program will continue to expand its eligibility criteria, with no restrictions on the size or sector of participating businesses, and notably, it will not charge any fees to enterprises. In addition to the annually announced list of the top 100 sustainable enterprises, CSI 2025 will introduce special award categories to recognize and encourage pioneering companies in sustainable development practices. The specific content of these categories will be selected by the Evaluation Council, based on international trends and local realities in Vietnam, ensuring alignment with strategic priorities at each phase.

Highlighting the pivotal role of the CSI index in strengthening sustainable governance, Ms. Dao Thuy Ha, Board Member and Deputy General Director of Traphaco Joint Stock Company, a nine-year consecutive CSI honoree, noted that Traphaco has adopted the CSI index as a self-assessment tool to review its management systems. She emphasized that the Index serves not only as a scoring framework but as a reflective tool for comprehensively evaluating business performance across financial, human resources, environmental, supply chain, and innovation dimensions.

According to Ms. Ha, applying the CSI has helped Traphaco clearly identify its strengths to build upon and areas needing improvement. Beyond merely meeting certification requirements or standards, Traphaco proactively leverages the data obtained through the CSI evaluation process to adjust business strategies, improve operational efficiency, and create sustainable added value for all stakeholders, from employees and customers to shareholders and the community.

A representative from the Deep C Industrial Park Complex also shared their journey of integrating sustainable development into the strategy for building green and smart industrial infrastructure, particularly emphasizing the CSI index’s role in shaping the normative framework for developing eco-industrial parks in Vietnam.

Following the launch workshop, the Program Organizing Committee will conduct both in-person and online training sessions on Sustainable Corporate Governance in general, and on the application and implementation of the CSI index in corporate governance specifically, scheduled from June to August 2025. The deadline for enterprises to submit entries is August 15, 2025. Businesses can find more information and register for the program at http://vbcsd.vn/csi.asp.