The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have become a pivotal force driving sustainable growth and responsible practices in the construction industry worldwide. This comprehensive study aims to identify the specific barriers to SDG implementation in Vietnamese construction companies. Through a comprehensive literature review and in-depth expert interviews with industry professionals, a detailed questionnaire was systematically developed and distributed to 260 professionals within Vietnam’s construction sector. The collected survey data were rigorously analysed using explanatory factor analysis, which successfully identified six key factors influencing SDG adoption. To further confirm the structural validity of these factors, confirmatory factor analysis was subsequently conducted, followed by structural equation modelling (SEM) analysis. The SEM results clearly highlighted three critical factors – material, management, and training – as having a significant impact on decision making related to SDG adoption in construction firms. This research provides valuable insights into the complex challenges faced by Vietnamese construction firms in integrating the SDGs and offers a comprehensive framework that can inform similar initiatives in other developing countries.
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Research Article|
December 05 2025
Barriers to implementing Sustainable Development Goals in Vietnamese construction firms Available to Purchase
Thi Thu Ha Nguyen;
Thi Thu Ha Nguyen
Faculty of Civil Engineering,
Can Tho University
, Can Tho, Vietnam
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Jieh-Haur Chen;
Department of Civil Engineering, Research Center of Smart Construction, College of Engineering,
National Central University
, Taoyuan, Taiwan
; Safety and Health Association of Taiwan, Miaoli, TaiwanCorresponding author Jieh-Haur Chen (jhchen@ncu.edu.tw)
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Phan Viet Anh Nguyen
Phan Viet Anh Nguyen
Department of Civil Engineering,
National Central University
, Taoyuan, Taiwan
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Corresponding author Jieh-Haur Chen (jhchen@ncu.edu.tw)
Conflict of interest The authors have no competing interests to declare that are relevant to the content of this article.
Publisher: Emerald Publishing
Received:
January 02 2025
Accepted:
October 30 2025
Online ISSN: 1751-7680
Print ISSN: 1478-4629
Funding
Funding Group:
- Award Group:
- Funder(s): Taiwan National Science and Technology Council (>NSTC)
- Award Id(s): NSTC-110-2221-E-008-052-MY3,NSTC-111-2221-E-008-027-MY3,NSTC-113-2622-E-008-012
- Funder(s):
- Funding Statement(s): The authors extend their gratitude for the partial support provided for this research by the Taiwan National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) under the grant numbers NSTC-110-2221-E-008-052-MY3, NSTC-111-2221-E-008-027-MY3, and NSTC-113-2622-E-008-012. It is important to note that any opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations presented in this paper solely belong to the authors and do not necessarily reflect the perspectives of the NSTC.
© 2025 Emerald Publishing Limited
2025
Emerald Publishing Limited
Licensed re-use rights only
Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Engineering Sustainability 1–16.
Article history
Received:
January 02 2025
Accepted:
October 30 2025
Citation
Nguyen TTH, Chen J, Nguyen PVA (2025;), "Barriers to implementing Sustainable Development Goals in Vietnamese construction firms". Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Engineering Sustainability, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1680/jensu.25.00001
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