In Vietnam, cash remains the dominant method of payment, despite telecommunication networks covering almost the entire country. With support from Australian DFAT, we have developed a partnership with the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies (VBSP), a publicly-owned micro finance institution with roughly seven million clients, and Mastercard, to introduce digital financial services in rural, remote, and mountainous areas. More than 60 percent of these new clients are women, 90 percent of whom have micro and small businesses.

Opportunities can be found in unexpected corners of the rapidly evolving technology sector. A case in point: blockchain, a distributed ledger technology with built-in cryptographic authentication that first emerged as the underpinning technology that maintains Bitcoin. With support from the Australian Government, our Vietnam office is adapting blockchain technology to create a digital proof-of-provenance platform for the Vietnamese dragon fruit supply chain. For the growers and other actors involved in the supply chain, mostly micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises, the blockchain creates a secure brand identity that cannot be faked, while importers and consumers receive trusted information on the provenance of the fruit, from point of origin to point of consumption, including important food-safety information. The blockchain creates trust, increases transparency, and ensures regulatory compliance, and is likely to be a component of future Foundation programs.