Vietnam has played a crucial role in promoting economic, trade, and investment links, especially the South-South cooperation, between African countries and Francophone countries in the Mekong region.
Rice is one of the key export products to African market (Photo: VNA)
HCM City (VNA) - Vietnam has played a crucial role in ♏promoting economic, trade🦩, and investment links, especially the South-South cooperation, between African countries and the Francophone countries of the Mekong region.
The country’s know-how in the fields of its strength will contribute to removing bottlenecks in South-South partnership issues such as legal and commercial disputes and financial payment, said Vice President of the Vietnam-Africa-Middle East Business Forum Thai Kieu Phuong.
She noted that the country holds vast potential in developing agriculture and high technology.
Vietnam has gained positive achievements with export turnover increasing to 150 billion USD in 2014 from 100 billion USD in 2012. It also recorded a trade surplus for three consecutive years.
Dong The Quang, an expert from the International Organisation of La Francophonie (OIF), said the Vietnamese Government and businesses are expected to actively swing into action to seize investment and trade opportunities in the Francophone economic space.
The organisation hopes to receive strong support from Vietnam as it is moving to develop inter-regional economic links in Africa, Asia, and Europe between 2015 and 2018.
Director of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s Ho Chi Minh City Office Vo Tan Thanh said Vietnam wants to share experience in post-harvest agricultural processing with members of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) and the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa (CEMAC).
Vietnam has put into operation a number of processing plants for farm produce such as rice and cashew nut, which serves domestic market and exports, he noted.
The creation of a production value chain to churn out high-quality commodities has been defined a major development orientation of the agriculture sector, he added.
According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, trade between Vietnam and UEMOA countries increased fivefold from 180 million USD in 2007 to 854 million USD last year.
Meanwhile, bilateral trade between Vietnam and CEMAC nations increased to 340.8 million USD in 2014 from 72.6 million USD in 2007.
Deputy head of the ministry’s South-West Asia and Africa Department Hoang Duc Nhuan said rice is the key export staple to UEMOA and CEMAC, accounting for 50-70 percent of the country’s total exports to the markets, followed by garment-textile and processed industrial products.
In recent years, Vietnam has sought to export new commodities to the markets such as seafood, steel products, machinery and spare parts.
Potential fields including farm produce, apparel and timber products are expected to gross 5 billion USD worth in export revenue.-VNA
Vietnam will enhance its engagement in Francophone activities in line with the country’s foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, diversification and multilateralisation of international relations, and being a reliable and responsible member of the international community.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the International Organisation of the Francophonie (OIF) will hold a regional forum on economic cooperation among French-speaking nations in Hanoi from April 3-4.
A forum of French-speaking countries in the Asia-Pacific region concluded in Hanoi on April 4, after two days working on an economic strategy for the Francophone community.
Vietnam will once again honour the French language through a film festival and concerts to celebrate International Francophonie Day, which falls on March 20.
A key change in the draft decree is a provision requiring bank transfers for gold transactions valued at 20 million VND (765 USD) and above, to enhance transparency and verify customer identities.
In the first four months of 2025, trade turnover between Vietnam and Cambodia surpassed 3 billion USD, marking a 7% increase compared to the same period in 2024.
On June 19 alone, a total of 2,005 trucks completed customs clearance at Lang Son’s border gates — the highest single-day figure ever recorded in the province. Of these, 634 carried exports and 1,371 imports.
The OECD Economic Surveys: Vietnam 2025 report focuses on analysing the country’s macroeconomic fundamentals, the impact of international integration on attracting foreign investment and trade, and the country’s prospects for developing a low-carbon economy.
Antoine Colin, Senior Vice President for Global Supply Chain Digital Transformation & Resilience at HP Inc., affirmed HP’s strategic commitment to building a supply chain and ecosystem in Vietnam and the region.
Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT)’s Trade Promotion Agency Bui Quang Hung emphasised that logistics has evolved from a technical function into a core capability for Vietnamese exporters to maintain their competitive advantage in the US market.
A trade official has suggested companies work closely with shipping lines, airlines, and freight forwarders to monitor routes, transit times, and potential surcharges while exploring broader cargo insurance to cover risks like war and terrorism.
In addition to institutional reform, the agency is also rolling out key solution groups to combat counterfeit goods, imitations, and intellectual property infringements in the digital environment.
The event, co-organised by the Vietnam Trade Office in the UK and TT Meridian, a local importer of Vietnamese fresh produce, aims to build a national lychee brand and encourage broader recognition of Vietnamese fruits in a competitive, high-end market.
The industry's performance has been powered by bold investments in modern production lines, enabling Vietnamese firms to produce complicated products which were exclusive to advanced economies.
Outcomes of ABAC III will shape ABAC’s final policy recommendations to be submitted to the ABAC-APEC leaders’ dialogue, scheduled to take place in the Republic of Korea this November.
This is the second year the magazine has released the ranking, which is based on total revenue and key financial indicators of enterprises from seven countries in the region: Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, and Cambodia.
At the summit, publishing, tech, and media sectors will discuss emerging trends, business models, and sustainable solutions for digital publishing development in Vietnam.
This year’s “Vietnam Goods Week” marks a significant milestone as it is being held simultaneously for the first time in four locations across Asia: Japan, Hong Kong (China), Cambodia, and Malaysia, from June 19 - 22.
According to NordCham Vietnam Chairman Thue Quist Thomasen, the Vietnamese Government’s commitment to achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 is both a challenge and an opportunity for businesses to contribute to green and sustainable growth.
The analysis from an investment perspective shows that the economy’s growth has been heavily capital‑driven, yet efficiency remains low as reflected by Vietnam’s Incremental Capital-Output Ratio (ICOR) being significantly higher than global and regional averages. This underscores the imperative to enhance capital‑use efficiency.
Rice is one of the key export products to African market (Photo: VNA)
