Kimmi Võ
Founder, Mekong Brief & Mangrove Strategies
Former USAID/USDA Diplomat · Trade Economist · Ho Chi Minh City
Kimmi Võ | Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
I grew up in a Vietnamese-American family — the daughter of refugees who built a new life far from the rice paddies of Central Vietnam. That history is part of why working here, in Ho Chi Minh City, on the trade that connects Vietnam to the world, carries more than professional meaning for me.
My path to Vietnam trade wasn't a straight line. I started with the US Peace Corps in Namibia, working on economic inclusion for women farmers. I went on to work with UN Women in Bangkok, on water governance in Cambodia, and at Dalberg Advisors advising the International Finance Corporation on ESG risk in fragile markets. I studied international economics and development at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies — in Bologna and Washington — before joining the US government as an Agricultural Development Diplomat with USAID, where I worked on food systems, climate-smart agriculture, and food security programs across Asia and Africa. Before that posting, I spent time at USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service overseeing a global portfolio of sustainable agriculture programs. I hold a US diplomatic passport and have worked in and traveled to more than 90 countries.
In 2025, I came to Ho Chi Minh City with a specific purpose: to build something at the intersection of the intelligence I'd spent a decade accumulating and a market I understand from the inside. I'm bilingual in Vietnamese and English — I read Vietnamese-language government circulars, trade press, and industry bulletins as fluently as I read Reuters. That's not common in this space, and it matters for the quality of analysis I can produce.
Mekong Brief is that project. It's a biweekly trade intelligence newsletter on Vietnam's food, agriculture, and commercial sectors — written for the professionals on both sides of the market: the international buyers, importers, and sourcing teams trying to understand what's happening in Vietnam, and the Vietnamese exporters navigating US and EU regulatory complexity. Through Mangrove Strategies, I also provide advisory services to companies that need more than a newsletter — on-the-ground support for market entry, supplier due diligence, and regulatory navigation. I maintain close working relationships with US agricultural trade officers at the US Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnamese industry associations, and market professionals across the supply chain.
Experience & Background
US GOVERNMENT
Former USAID/USDA Diplomat
Agricultural Development Diplomat, USAID Bureau for Resilience, Environment and Food Security. M&E Specialist, USDA Foreign Agricultural Service Global Programs — overseeing a portfolio of ~$500M in sustainable agriculture and food security programs.
EDUCATION
Johns Hopkins SAIS
M.A. International Economics and International Development (Bologna + Washington, D.C.). B.S. Management, Boston College Carroll School of Management.
LANGUAGES
Vietnamese & English
Advanced fluency in both Vietnamese and English. Intermediate Mandarin and French. Reads Vietnamese-language government circulars, trade press, and industry publications.
FIELD EXPERIENCE
90+ Countries
Field work and program experience across Southeast Asia, South Asia, East Africa, and West Africa. Former Peace Corps Volunteer, Namibia. Field missions in Cambodia, Madagascar, India, and Zambia.
In the Field
With former US Ambassador to Vietnam Ted Osius
Field work in Southeast Asia / Sub-Saharan Africa
What I am Building
Mekong Brief
Vietnam Trade and Market Intelligence
A biweekly trade intelligence newsletter covering Vietnam food, agriculture, and commercial sectors. Free and paid tiers. Bilingual, each issue is available in English and Vietnamese.
Subscribe free
Mangrove Strategies
Trade Advisory and Market Access
Boutique advisory firm specializing in US-Vietnam market entry, sourcing strategy, and regulatory navigation. On-the-ground presence in Ho Chi Minh City.