Distinguished panelists, colleagues, and guests,

It is an honor to be part of this discussion alongside such esteemed speakers. I would like to warmly thank all fellow panelists for their contributions today. And I would like to extend appreciation to the organizers for creating this space to reflect on emerging non-traditional security threats.

I was asked to share some thoughts on global good practices in developing human security policies and their implications for Viet Nam. To do so, I will draw from UNDP’s global and regional experience.

Ladies and gentlemen,

As many of you know, the concept of human security, as endorsed by the UN General Assembly in Resolution 66/290, compels us to move beyond traditional notions of state security. Beyond an understanding of security focused exclusively on the state. Instead, it calls for a focus on people’s freedom from fear, freedom from want, and freedom to live in dignity. It emphasizes prevention, participation, and protection. It calls for responses that are comprehensive and rooted in local realities. And puts governance at the centre of enabling this vision.

UNDP has long championed human security as a tool to connect development, human rights, and peacebuilding. Our experience shows that human security, when anchored in inclusive governance systems—can help societies anticipate and respond to risks that are non-violent but deeply destabilizing.

Today, I will briefly touch on two pressing areas: climate change and digitalization, both of which are increasingly recognized as key risks in Viet Nam and globally.

On human security and climate change. The World Economic Forum’s Global Risk Report 2025 identifies environmental risks—including extreme weather, failure of climate mitigation and adaptation, and biodiversity loss—as the most likely and consequential threats over the next decade. 

Viet Nam has moved up in global climate risk rankings, indicating increasing vulnerability, especially in the Mekong Delta and densely populated urban coastal areas. Recent events like Typhoon Yagi have illustrated how sudden and devastating these climate shocks can be. Across the region, countries like the Philippines have faced escalating climate threats, managing multiple concurrent storms last year, which severely strained response capacities and affected millions. This underscores the regional nature of this risk.

Viet Nam’s forthcoming Nationally Determined Contribution - NDC 3.0 - represents a vital opportunity to align political commitment with actionable pathways for adaptation and mitigation, while also ensuring that human needs and vulnerabilities are fully integrated into climate planning. This exercise will be crucial in guiding investment, international cooperation, and public policy over the coming decade.

Yet, as climate impacts accelerate, our responses must place people at the center, addressing:

• Climate-induced displacement, particularly in rural and coastal areas;

• Livelihood and food insecurity, affecting agriculture and fisheries;

• Strain on health and public infrastructure, especially in underserved communities.

We can draw inspiration from Vanuatu and other Pacific Island states, where climate change has been framed not only as an environmental issue, but as a threat to cultural identity, sovereignty, and basic human rights. These countries have championed people-centered adaptation policies, inclusive disaster governance, and international advocacy that links climate and human security. Their experiences remind us that solutions must go beyond the technical, by strengthening social cohesion, legal protection, and local empowerment to build long-term resilience.

Yesterday, we celebrated the International Day for Biological Diversity at Cuc Phuong National Park with Vice Minister Tri of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment. This significant day was marked by releasing birds into the wild, highlighting our commitment to biodiversity conservation. Biodiversity loss is increasingly recognized as a non-traditional security threat, undermining essential ecosystem services such as food security, clean water, and disease regulation. Protecting and rewilding efforts face significant challenges as long as there is a demand for wildlife consumption and traditional medicines derived from wild species. For instance, it takes 15 years for a turtle to mature, yet it can be consumed in just 5 minutes, illustrating the urgent need for stronger protective measures. Protecting our precious natural heritage is not just an environmental issue but a matter of national and global security, requiring immediate and collaborative action to ensure a sustainable future.

Turning to human security and digitalization. Digitalization plays a key role in Viet Nam’s long-term development strategy. It can be a powerful driver of governance innovation and economic transformation. Resolution 57 places digital transformation at the heart of public sector reform, business development, and citizen participation. This highlights the Government’s commitment to building a modern, inclusive, and participatory digital ecosystem.

However, digital transformation also presents new and growing threats to human security that go far beyond cybercrime. Risks such as misinformation, AI-driven exclusion, algorithmic bias, and erosion of privacy are now among the world’s most urgent non-violent threats. These affect people's access to services, social cohesion, political participation, and the ability to freely and safely navigate digital space.

The World Economic Forum’s 2025 Global Risk Index identifies adverse uses of artificial intelligence as one of the top risks for Viet Nam, underscoring the urgency of ethical, inclusive, and accountable AI governance.

While cybersecurity is a critical element, human security in the digital age requires broader responses. We must ensure that AI and digital technologies do not undermine dignity, deepen inequality, or exclude vulnerable populations.

Viet Nam has taken important steps through its National Strategy on AI, which aims to make the country a regional innovation hub. The strategy is aligned with ASEAN’s own digital transformation priorities and is supported by key decrees and decisions on personal data protection and principles for responsible AI development, including transparency, privacy, and respect for human rights.

The forthcoming Laws on Digital Technology Industry and Personal Data Protection are also expected to strengthen the national legal framework for ethical and responsible AI use. These efforts reflect a flexible yet structured regulatory approach that encourages innovation through tools like regulatory sandboxes, while also banning harmful AI practices, requiring labeling of AI-generated content, and offering incentives for inclusive R&D.

However, significant policy and capacity gaps remain:

• Ethics and equity are not yet fully integrated into the national AI strategy;

• There is no dedicated body overseeing AI ethics or conducting independent impact assessments;

• A shortage of disaggregated data and limited diversity in the AI workforce limits the inclusiveness of AI development;

• And cross-sectoral coordination, especially to protect women, children, minorities, and rural communities from algorithmic harms, presents an ongoing area for institutional strengthening.

Globally, countries like Canada, Singapore, and Estonia are already embedding human-in-the-loop safeguards. They are establishing AI ethics councils, and applying participatory design to ensure technologies serve people, not the other way around.

UNDP stands ready to support Viet Nam in aligning its digital transformation with human security principles—by strengthening rights-based legal frameworks, building public sector capacity, promoting ethical innovation, and ensuring no one is left behind in the digital age.As we face these complex and fast-evolving challenges, human security reminds us that resilience must be built from the ground up—through trust in institutions, responsive policies, and inclusive participation.

These are not challenges that any one government or institution can face alone. 

While Resolution UN General Assembly Resolution 66/290 reaffirms that governments have the primary responsibility for ensuring the survival, livelihood, and dignity of their people, it also recognizes that today’s human security threats—whether environmental, digital, health, or socioeconomic—cross borders and sectors.

They require collaboration and solidarity—not only across government ministries, but also across countries, communities, and fields of expertise.

As Viet Nam continues its journey on digital and climate transformation, UNDP remains committed to supporting the country in strengthening governance models and policies that are people-centered, inclusive, and future-ready.

This will inevitably require strengthening key government capabilities. An ability to anticipate and respond to risks. An ability to coordinate and cooperate across sectors and mandates as well as between central and local levels. And, above all, an ability and openness to experimentation, learning and innovation.

UNDP stands ready to support the Government in this journey.

Thank you.