Despite policy reforms and the integration of various linkages in rice
production by the Vietnamese government, small-scale farmers' (small
farmers’) access to the market is limited. A value chain link is a powerful tool
for improving small farmers' market access and competitiveness. The benefits
of horizontal and vertical coordination on farm household performance were
investigated using a dataset of 160 farmers. Twenty-two stakeholders were
also directly interviewed to analyze the value chain and farmers' access to
markets in the Mekong River Delta, where 75% of people live in rural areas
and contribute to 90% Vietnam's total rice production. According to our
findings, farmers' profits are higher than in the past and total chain economic
value is more efficient when farmers participate in vertical or horizontal
coordination. Logit regression revealed that the determinants of farmers'
decision to participate in cooperatives are training and expected benefits
obtained from cooperatives. As a result, collective actions, such as contracting
firms and cooperative engagement, are required to assist farmers in accessing
the market. The findings also show that participation in value chain links,
coordination, and integration benefits food companies significantly. However,
financial assistance and insurance are required to adequately cover farmers'
production costs and secure contract firms. Furthermore, a written contract
should be made to strengthen the value chain. Cooperatives or farmers'
organizations can be used as intermediaries to improve vertical and horizontal
coordination by establishing links between small farmers and other market
stakeholders.