Seeking Solutions to Business Restoration and Competitiveness Improvement for Agribusinesses

On December 22, 2021, the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) cooperated with Facebook Inc. (currently Meta Platforms Inc.) to open a webinar on “Solutions to overcome pandemic and enhance competitiveness for agro-fishery businesses in the digital economy in Can Tho”.

The webinar aimed to search for initiatives and solutions enabling Can Tho City-based agro-fishery businesses to restore business, improve competitiveness and apply digital technology to agricultural and aquacultural production and consumption. The event was also an opportunity for policymakers, local authorities, experts, business support organizations and the Can Tho business community to discuss and put forth solutions for businesses to boost cooperation and develop in agriculture and fishery in the digital economy.

In the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, to flexibly adapt to the new context, in addition to supportive policies introduced by the central government, launching digitally enabled initiatives, powered by digital transformation, accelerating market shifts, linking value chain-based development, changing product designs and packages, and building brands to create added value for products are necessary approaches and solutions for sustainable agricultural and aquacultural development in the coming time.

The agro-fishery industry is considered a “protective shield” for the entire economy during the COVID-19 pandemic by distributing food to the people, stabilizing consumer prices, providing alternative jobs and creating export revenue. However, the sector is currently facing new challenges such as climate change and environmental consequences; ethics in food production, safety and origin; limited natural resources, increased labor costs and small investment.

Speaking at the webinar, Ms. Tran Thi Thanh Tam, Deputy Director of the SME Promotion Center, VCCI, said, “For Vietnamese businesses, digital transformation helps speed up information to make more prompt and more transparent decisions to quickly respond to market fluctuations and better meet customer needs. Therefore, they need to understand digital economic development trends and digital marketing tools and upgrade their innovations.”

Mr. Ruici Tio, Policy Program Manager for Asia-Pacific, Facebook Inc, said: “Meta Platforms Inc, (formerly Facebook Inc.) is proud to be a long-time partner of the SME Promotion Center (SME-PC), a member of VCCI, and has carried out the Boost with Facebook Program in Vietnam since 2017. Through this partnership, we offer free resources and training courses for SMEs in digital transformation and help them adapt and grow their businesses in this important moment. The webinar in Can Tho is our first focused program for the agro-fishery sector, emphasizing the importance of helping SMEs in this sector apply digital tools to innovate and test new ideas and leverage the power of precisely targeted marketing to reach new customers and international export markets. We are excited to further expand this series of training programs this year and in 2022.”

The workshop was part of the Boost with Facebook Program implemented by VCCI in Vietnam. This is Facebook's commitment to supporting Vietnamese businesses to develop in the digital economy.

B.H (Vietnam Business Forum)