Vietnam and the Netherlands join forces to address salinity for sustainable horticulture in the Mekong Delta

“The Mekong Delta is facing the growing challenge of salinity. Rising salt levels in the soil and water are affecting agriculture, threatening both food security and the livelihoods of millions of farmers in the Mekong Delta. It is not only an environmental issue but also a business, development, and resilience problem”, said Ms. Raïssa Marteaux, Consul General of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, at the business forum “Salty Soils, Shared Solutions: Vietnam and the Netherlands Dialogue on Salinity for Horticulture Development in the Mekong Delta” held on January 21st, 2026 in Can Tho City.

For many years, the Netherlands and Vietnam have worked closely together through the Strategic Partnership Agreement on Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security, and on Water Management and Climate Change. Sustainable horticulture in the Mekong Delta has become a key pillar of cooperation, and both sides are committed to long-term collaboration to strengthen resilience, apply innovative technologies, develop value chains, and support farmers and businesses in adapting to climate change.
The business forum, held by the Netherlands Embassy in Vietnam in collaboration with Can Tho University, gathered 23 Dutch companies, knowledge institutions, financial organizations, and cooperatives with expertise in horticulture, water management, technology, impact finance, and cooperative development. It also brought together nearly 150 local stakeholders from various organisations, public and private sectors, including local government representatives, farmers, cooperatives, businesses, associations, and universities active in the agriculture sector in Vietnam.
Through expert presentations and panel discussions, the forum provided a deeper understanding of salinity intrusion in the Mekong Delta, alongside insights into Dutch experience in saline agriculture and practical pathways toward climate-smart horticulture.

The Mekong Delta does not stand alone in its struggle

“Saltwater intrusion is still a big challenge for the Mekong Delta. It affects farming and horticulture, reduces access to clean water, and makes life harder for many people,” Dr. Le Van Lam, Vice Rector of Can Tho University, emphasized in his opening remarks.
He stressed that the region needs new solutions that can work in real-life conditions and be applied on a large scale. Dr. Lam highlighted the importance of the business forum, adding that to deal with salinity, the Mekong Delta needs better water and crop management, new ideas along the value chain, and strong cooperation between the public and private sectors.

Multiple pathways to resilience in the Mekong Delta

One of the highlights of the business forum was a series of three panel discussions, bringing together industry experts from Vietnam and the Netherlands to exchange solutions to overcome the impact of salinity, explore innovations for the development of Mekong Delta’s horticulture, and discuss partnerships for climate-smart horticulture.
According to Mr. Jean Yong, Chair Professor of Sustainable Farming, Brightlands Future of Farming Institute, Maastricht University, there is no single, fixed solution for the Mekong Delta because its unique diversity requires diverse solutions. He said that in some places, the priority has to be water management. In others, the focus should be on seed resilience, drought tolerance, or salt-tolerant rootstocks. And in many areas, these approaches need to be combined. There is no one-size-fits-all solution for all farms, because conditions differ so much, from drainage patterns and soil health to the acceptability of the community.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Viet Ha, Deputy Head of the Farmers’ Affairs Department, Vietnam Farmers’ Union, shed light on what encourages local farmers to adopt new practices and technologies.
Ms. Ha said that Vietnamese farmers are more likely to adopt new technologies when they can clearly see tangible benefits for themselves and their families, not only in economic terms but also in social and environmental aspects. She noted that ease of use is critical, while affordability and market stability also play a decisive role. According to her, building trust in new technologies requires awareness-raising through training, demonstrations, promotion, and ongoing support.
Mr. Guus Paardekooper, CEO of SkillEd, echoed Ms. Ha’s views. “We should have nearby demonstration sites where farmers can actually see how things work, ideally on the land of neighboring farmers who are similar to them. Farmers will come, ask questions, and learn from real practice,” Mr. Guus Paardekooper said. What really matters is seeing immediate impact. If farmers see improvements in yields and family income within the first crop cycles, they will be keen to do the same. 
He also emphasized the importance of a well-organized extension system. “If we want to work at a larger, landscape level, this needs to be done in an organized way. Cooperatives can play an important role in making that happen, encouraging participation and enabling change. In the end, the whole system has a role to play.”
 

The forum also heard Dutch experience on agriculture in a saline environment through the presentation by Mr. Peter Prins, CEO of SALTA – a unique knowledge cluster of more than 50 public and private partners in the Netherlands bundling the expertise on freshwater issues and salinity in the coastal zone of the Netherlands. SALTA bridges the gap between research, policymakers and farmers' community. As the coastal zone of Netherlands and Vietnam both have to deal with scarce freshwater and saline soils, exchange of experiences could be beneficial for both countries.
In his presentation, Mr. Peter Prins noted that research on Vietnam’s agriculture in saline conditions remains highly fragmented, with knowledge scattered across institutions and rarely translated into integrated solutions. He noted that SALTA brings together universities, farmers’ organizations, private seed companies, vocational training centers, and local governments to ensure knowledge on salinity and water management is shared, applied, and passed on to future generations.
He also noted that one key similarity between the Netherlands’ delta and Vietnam’s Mekong Delta is clay soil. Clay responds very differently to salinity compared with sandy soil. While global expertise on the impact of salinity is extensive, he said most research has focused on sandy soils.

A “very timely” dialogue

What is alarming is that salinity intrusion in the Mekong Delta is no longer an occasional shock but is becoming structural. Mr. Vinod Ahuja from FAO noted that in 2016, around 160,000 hectares of crops were damaged. In 2020, more than one million hectares of winter–spring crops were considered at risk. For horticulture, the implications are direct and commercial: lower yields, inconsistent quality, higher production costs, and increased volatility in supply. In other words, salinity increases operational risk, market risk, and credit risk.
However, the Mekong Delta is not only vulnerable but also resilient, Mr. Ahuja said, explaining that local farmers are adapting, production systems are evolving, new technologies are being tested, and consumer demand for safe, traceable and sustainably produced food is rising. The task ahead is to turn adaptation into a scalable, investable transformation, he said. 
For decades, the response to salinity was to try to keep salt out, but a new reality must be accepted: salinity will be part of the production environment.
“The smarter strategy is not only to defend against it, but to manage it intelligently. This is where cooperation between Vietnam and the Netherlands is especially valuable. The Netherlands brings long experience in delta management, water governance, applied agricultural research, and climate-resilient horticulture. Vietnam brings scale, dynamic entrepreneurs, growing domestic demand, and deep integration into regional and global markets,” Mr. Ahuja said, calling the business forum a “very timely” dialogue.
He believed that the Vietnam – Netherlands partnership can help build production systems that are not only climate-resilient, but commercially robust. From an investment perspective, three practical pathways stand out: early-warning systems to reduce salinity risk and stabilize farm incomes; freshwater storage and smart canal operations to protect assets and reduce production volatility; and salt-resilient horticulture linked to quality standards, traceability, and markets. While such models are already emerging in parts of the Mekong Delta, scaling them up is now the key challenge.
The business forum in Can Tho also witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding to establish three action-oriented partnerships, underscoring a significant step toward strengthened cooperation and concrete action between Vietnam and the Netherlands.

Contact information

Do you have any questions for the Agriculture Department at the Netherlands Embassy in Vietnam? If so, please send an email to HAN-LVVN@minbuza.nl or HCM-LVVN@minbuza.nl. For the latest updates, news, funding opportunities and more, follow our LinkedIn: Netherlands Agricultural Network in Vietnam.