Vietnam: A tailor made market for Belgium
(VOV) - The Wallonie Foreign Trade and Investment Agency (AWEX) is marking its 20th anniversary of operations in Vietnam, a country it considers one of the most dynamic economies in Asia.
Since 1994 the mission of AWEX has been to deal with the vast aspects relating to foreign trade. In that capacity it has been responsible for developing reports such as foreign trade statistics and has advised the government on legislation and regulations
Most notably, AWEX has been recognized for organizing a project on training family doctors between the University of Liège (Belgium) and the University of Medicine and Pharmacy (Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam).
As part of the programme, doctors from Wallonie flew to Vietnam to teach and on the other end of the spectrum Vietnamese students travelled to the University of Liège to study.
AWEX has also received high praise for its contributions to the development of economic relationships between the Wallonie region and Vietnam, specifically for its assistance in negotiating a deal involving Sopura-a leading company specializing in cleaning and sanitizing solutions for the brewing, beverage and food industries.
Under a joint venture agreement with a Vietnamese partner Sopura has invested 1 million euros in Vietnam. Most recently, Minister of Economy and Foreign Affairs of Wallonia Jean-Claude Marcourt has suggested that regional enterprises should invest in Vietnam because it boasts great development potential and low labour costs.
In honour of the occasion the French-language public-service broadcasting service of Belgium recently aired a short piece reporting the activities of AWEX in Vietnam over the past 20 years.