Following the success of the Vietnam-Singapore Business Forum (VSBF) held in 2011 and 2013, VSBF 2014 will be held on June 4-6 in Ho Chi Minh City. The forum is co-organised by Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and the Singapore Business Federation (SBF). This is an opportunity to promote and elevate the good relations between the two countries, especially after the two countries signed an Agreement on Strategic Partnership in September 2013.
Vietnam Business Forum interviewed Dr Doan Duy Khuong, Vice President of VCCI, ahead of this important event.
What do you think about the cooperation between Vietnam and Singapore in recent years, especially since the two countries have upgraded the bilateral relations to a strategic partnership in September, 2013?
Since the diplomatic relationship between two countries was established in 1973, Vietnam and Singapore have become strategic trade and investment partners. Singapore highly appreciates the importance of developing a strategic partnership with Vietnam, and Vietnam becomes one of the main markets of Singapore in the Southeast Asia. Singapore is also one of the trading partners and leading investors of Vietnam.
During the official visit to Vietnam by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in September 2013, the two countries decided to elevate the relations to a strategic partnership, promoting the relations between Vietnam and Singapore in terms of both quantity and quality. According to statistics of the General Department of Customs, the bilateral trade between Vietnam and Singapore in the period 2006 and 2012 always reached a large proportion of the total exports of the two countries. Currently, Singapore is among the largest trade partners of Vietnam in the world, only after China, Japan, USA and Korea, and it is the largest trade partner of Vietnam among the members of ASEAN.
In the first two months of 2014, the trade turnover between Vietnam and Singapore continued to grow. The growth rate of the number of exports was still maintained, compared to the same period of 2013; with gas and fuel enjoying an increase of 250.68 percent; pepper 194.23 percent and coffee 61.34 percent. Notably, in the first two months of this year, Vietnam exported more goods to Singapore; the ceramics and rubber products respectively reached a turnover of US$614,000 and around US$267,000.
On the import side, most of the imported items from Singapore to Vietnam have high growth rates; the food and processed products have increased by 568 percent; books 106 percent; spare parts and equipment for aviation 105 percent; cigarettes 67 percent; optical equipment machinery 55 percent; gasoline 45 percent; and steel 44 percent.
In addition, the two countries have many similarities and active collaboration at the regional and international forums, particularly in the framework of ASEAN, APEC, and ASEM. Currently, both countries are trying to put the action plans in effect not only to connect the two economies, but also connect the economies in the ASEAN region.
Especially, the Asian Ministerial Conference on negotiations of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) of 12 countries, namely Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the U.S. and Vietnam, was held in Singapore on May 19-20. The participants continued to discuss the areas where consensus has not been reached, such as investment, financial services, state-owned enterprises, electronic commerce, open markets, customs, intellectual property, labour, environment, agriculture, textiles. If the agreement is reached, it will open up huge opportunities for business cooperation between Vietnam-Singapore in the future.
It is the third time VCCI, in cooperation with the Singapore Business Federation (SBF), will hold the Vietnam-Singapore Business Forum. Could you please share with us some of the key features of the event? What are the main topics to be discussed at this event and what are main differences of this event compared with the event two years ago?
As in previous years, the VSBF 2014 is held in the form of a business forum in three days with the aim of strengthening the economic relations and seeking cooperation opportunities between the businesses of the two economies. The participants of the event include the leaders of the big businesses, top industry professionals, policy makers and government officials from Singapore and Vietnam, to provide in-depth assessment and update the business opportunities of Vietnam and Singapore.
The VSBF 2014 will focus on the discussion of key topics chaired by experts and industry leaders as well as government officials. The main topics are financial services cooperation opportunities; agriculture and aquaculture production; tourism and hospitality; real estate investment; business sustainability. Participants can seek business opportunities through the business visits and field trips in the industrial parks of Binh Duong Province.
Some of the contents discussed at the forum are the current activities of banks and financial institutions in Vietnam; potential exports from Vietnam to Singapore and benefits gained from a free trade agreement between Singapore and other countries, experiences of Singapore in the application of biotechnology to the manufacturing and processing of agricultural, forestry and fisheries products.
In addition, one of the highlights of this year's event is discussion on the topic of the environment and sustainable development of enterprises, the lessons learned from green environment-friendly programmes and the solutions to promote corporate social responsibility (CSR) and suggested solutions to help Vietnamese companies to build a sustainable and more environmentally friendly business model. This is one of those topics which draws great interest today.
What is the role of the VSBF 2014 in promoting cooperation between the two countries and how will opportunities be opened up for business cooperation?
The VSBF 2014 is an important event contributing to deepening the good cooperation in various fields between Vietnam and Singapore. The large-scale business promotion event will encourage and strengthen business cooperation between the leading enterprises from Vietnam and Singapore. The participants can look for business opportunities through participation in the activities of VSBF 2014, such as seminars, business networking, exhibitions, and local field trips.
The VSBF 2014 also helps build the economic ties between Singapore and Vietnam. This will be a great platform for business communities from both sides to exchange and explore new investment opportunities in Vietnam, Singapore and even work together to invest in third countries.
In addition, the VSBF 2014 also provides lots of meetings and working days between the most senior leaders of the provinces such as Quang Ngai and Thanh Hoa and the business and investment promotion organisations, as well as the Singapore's leading enterprises in order to remove the difficulties, problems and improve and optimise policies to attract investment into Vietnam from Singapore.
Through the forum, these companies also have the opportunities to interact with officials of ministries and agencies of the two countries, establish new relationships with potential partners and access capital as well as look for new business opportunities in Singapore and Vietnam.
In the complicated contexts of the current world situation and the region, namely the complicated and serious developments in the recent East Sea, we need to strengthen solidarity, peace building, security, stability and development in the region and successfully build up a stronger ASEAN Community as well as tighten the relationships with partners. I also hope that the VSBF 2014 will contribute to connecting business opportunities between Vietnam and Singapore, creating a favourable business environment as well as attracting investment and putting the actions plans of the ASEAN Economic Community by 2015 in effect.
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