This direction was emphasized by Nguyen Hong Nguyen, Deputy Director of the HCMC Department of Agriculture and Environment, at the seminar "Source Waste Sorting: Connecting for Effective Operation".

The HCMC Department of Agriculture and Environment said it is rebuilding the route for domestic solid waste collection following administrative boundary adjustments this is serving as a basis to organize bidding for transportation packages in 2027. 

Automated weighing systems have been deployed for waste volume management, and transport vehicles are tracked via real-time GPS.

Nguyen noted that to achieve substantive results by the 2027 timeline, issues facing both citizens and authorities must be addressed simultaneously.

For residents, strengthening responsibilities and offering skill guidance will demonstrate clear economic and operational benefits. Proper source sorting will lower household waste collection fees, generate value from recyclable waste, and build public trust as residents witness sorted waste collected and processed under standard protocols.

Concurrently, authorities will refine legal frameworks, technical standards, and issue detailed, actionable guidelines tailored to households and businesses. Targeted public communication will clarify obligations and rights while building synchronized collection and transport infrastructure.

"When we achieve these steps, I believe we will successfully transition our objective from 'proper disposal' to 'proper sorting,' even though this requires a long-term commitment," Nguyen said.

Nguyen Thi Ngoc Linh, Vice President of the HCMC Women's Union, noted that communication strategies must distinguish between citywide standardized content and solutions that allow localized flexibility.

The city needs a unified framework regarding implementation timelines, mandatory target groups, sorting criteria, and standardized collection methods. However, execution and resource mobilization should grant flexible autonomy to localities to fit specific residential characteristics, avoiding rigid, cookie-cutter application.

Crucially, local authorities must establish two-way feedback channels to listen to and address practical difficulties arising from daily life promptly.

Tripartite linkages

Sharing execution challenges at the local level, Nguyen Truong Giang, Vice Chair of the Tan My Ward People's Committee (HCMC), said that the locality collaborates with enterprises to implement the Material Recovery Facility (MRF) station initiative. 

The ward has allocated suitable land areas, including unused public land, to establish the station. After over three months of operation, the station recovered more than 5.5 tons of recyclable materials with over 700 citizen visits.

The model establishes a fixed destination that helps residents cultivate sorting habits while supporting local authorities in digitizing and transparently tracking raw material sources for the circular economy chain. The ward also combines building an ecological nursery right at the station to provide visual education for younger generations.

In Vietnam, this approach is gradually being realized. A prime example is the MRF station in Tan My Ward (HCMC), implemented by Unilever Vietnam in collaboration with local authorities and Grac Technology.

The pioneering highlight of this model lies in its digital platform operation, which enables the recording and tracking of recyclable material flows in real time. Waste, once sorted by households, is weighed, separated into distinct material categories, and stored individually prior to transfer to appropriate recycling facilities. The entire process is updated on the system.

Through a mobile application, residents can track the journey of the waste they sorted, from collection points to its transformation into raw material inputs for recycling. This approach bridges information gaps and systematically builds public confidence in the efficacy of source sorting.

A representative from the Department of Agriculture and Environment confirmed that if the MRF model continues to prove effective, the city will consider legalizing it for wider replication.

From a business perspective, Nguyen Thi Bich Van, Country General Manager of Unilever Vietnam, recognized that despite recent progress in Vietnam's recycling market, a large volume of post-consumption materials remains unutilized to provide a stable supply for the recycling industry at the quality and scale required.

Therefore, technological initiatives and innovations in improving the collection-sorting-recycling process are urgently needed. This will help generate additional demand for recycled materials and drive the plastic circular market to develop more strongly and sustainably.

Vu Dinh Nam, Deputy Director of the Department of Environment (Ministry of Agriculture and Environment), noted that bringing the circular economy deep into practical life requires close coordination among "three parties": the State, scientists, and enterprises. Only when resources are connected can potential ideas move beyond experimental scopes to create tangible value for the environment and the economy.

Thu Ha