Workshop seeks consultation on priorities in national export strategy

The event was part of the Trade Policy and Export Promotion Programme in Vietnam funded by the SwissTrade.

An expert from the ITC delivered a report on Vietnam’s export situation and its untapped potentials and put forward recommendations on five priority sectors, namely food, textile-garment, electronics, furniture, and environmental goods.

Other areas, including digital transformation, trade facilitation, sustainable development, and quality certification and standards, are suggested to be prioritised in the next phase of the strategy.

In the first stage of the strategy development, the ITC has consulted the MoIT, several other ministries and the private sector to produce in-depth assessment on Vietnam’s competitiveness in trade, said Dr. Alberto Armugo Pacheco, a member of the national export strategy development team.

The ITC has been focusing on formulating separate strategies for each selected priority sector and area, he said, adding that the three largest hard-currency earners – electronics, textile-garment, and footwear – account for up to 60% of untapped potential, so they can be viewed as priorities.

Machinery is close behind these three, he added, noting that they create many jobs but some of which are at risk of being replaced with automation.

Other experts held that agricultural processing and furniture, though having relatively low export potential index now, hold other advantages and that is why it is important to heighten their position in the market in the future.

Nguyen Cam Trang, Deputy Director of the MoIT’s Agency for Foreign Trade, said the consultation workshop provides a basis for the ITC to make better reviews and recommendations for its report.

The SwissTrade is represented by the Swiss Secretariat of Economic Affairs (SECO) from 2021 to 2024. Its overall objective is to improve trade performance and international competitiveness of SMEs through enhanced favourable framework condition for trade, public-private dialogue mechanisms, and a strengthened eco-system for dynamic export promotion.