Switzerland - A Big Partner of Vietnam

To understand more about the business environment and provide Switzerland’s businesses a chance to investigate specific business opportunities in Vietnam, a meeting was orgnised by Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and Switzerland Chamber of Commerce in Switzerland recently.

Switzerland is one of the western countries which have had traditional ties with Vietnam. In 1926, the country opened a consulate in Saigon (now known as Ho Chi Minh City). Until 1990s, the two countries’ relations saw positive developments, especially when Switzerland opened its embassy in Hanoi. Since then, the two countries have exchanged high-ranking visits to boost their relations. These include the Vietnam visits by president Arnold Koller who visited Vietnam and attended the seventh Francophone summit in 1997, by Vice President and Minister of Economics Pascal Couchepin in 2001. In return, Vietnam Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Manh Cam paid a visit to Switzerland in 2002 and Deputy Prime Minister Vu Khoan in 2003.

The bilateral relations between the two countries have seen positive developments. So far, Vietnam and Switzerland have signed some bilateral agreements to lay legal framework for the multi-faced co-operative relations between the two countries. These include the Agreement on Postal Cooperation in 1975, the Agreement on Aviation Transport Cooperation in 1979, the Agreement on Encouragement and Protection of Investment in July 1992, the Agreement on Double Taxation Avoidance in May 1996, the Agreement on Intellectual Property Protection in May 1999.

On August 25, 2005, the two governments signed an agreement ending the bilateral negotiation between Vietnam and Switzerland on Vietnam’s joining World Trade Organisation (WTO).

The bilateral trade turn-over continue to increase. Especially, in 2005 Vietnam’s export to Switzerland was over US $ 104 million and imported   from Switzerland over US $893 million. Vietnam’s exports to Switzerland are ceramic hygiene wares, leather products, foot-wears, garments, coffee, rubber, pepper, sea food and imports from Switzerland are pharmaceutical products, chemicals, mechanical equipment, filament fibre.

Since 2001, Switzerland has always reserved the special honourable guest regulation for Vietnam at international fairs in big cities such as Geneve, Lausanne, and Basel so that Vietnam is able to access its market and introduce her commodities and products.

As far as investment is concerned, Switzerland is now the third biggest European countries, just below the UK and France and ranked at 15^th of countries and territories investing in Vietnam with 33 projects. Some big groups should be named such as Nestle (Foodstuff)/ Novartis, Ciba-Sandoz (pharmaceutical chemicals), Roche (Pharmacy), Holcim (Cement), ABB (electric equipment), Sulzer (mechanics, electric equipment), Ringier (Printing), etc. Now nearly 100 Swiss businesses are operating in Vietnam in the form of 100 per cent of their capital, or joint-venture.

Together with the trade and investment development between the two countries, the Swiss government’s development assistance to Vietnam also increased. Switzerland has put Vietnam in the list of 17 priority countries that receive Switzerland’s annual assistance since 1993. Co-operation focuses on areas Switzerland has experience, including urban area management and infrastructure. The Swiss assistance also concentrates on natural resource management and education.