Da Nang Trade Information and Promotion Centre: A Helping Hand for Local Enterprises

Da Nang Trade Information and Promotion Centre: A Helping Hand for Local Enterprises

In order to accelerate and enhance the effectiveness of enterprises’ business operations, the Municipal People’s Committee of Da Nang decided to establish the Da Nang Trade Information and Promotion Centre on 11^th June 1998. Over recent times, the centre has rapidly completed its operating apparatus and installed Local Action Network (LAN) to prepare for the city’s involvement in e-commerce and facilitate the building of its e-commerce infrastructure.

Practical market information channels

The centre has developed many practical trade promotion programs, which are widely employed among enterprises. Notably, the centre has formed a market information channel which regularly provides relevant information. Enterprises can consequently keep abreast of market developments, which thereby facilitates the proposal of appropriate business solutions. Furthermore, the centre’s publication entitled, “The list of Da Nang City’s Enterprises” has provided useful information for business delegates who seek investment opportunities in Da Nang.

The centre has organised and co-organised many training courses, workshops, and forums on international economic integration, AFTA and trademarks. Over the past year, the centre has received a large number of business teams from Laos, China, Hong Kong, the United States, Japan, Canada and Singapore who came to Da Nang to explore investment opportunities.

Promoting exhibitions and fairs

The centre has also organised various export, consumption and tourism exhibitions in Da Nang City. It has dispatched enterprise missions to explore markets and participate in a number of domestic expositions. Consequently several enterprises of Da Nang City have concluded memorandums of understanding and set up distribution agents in many localities.

As far as the world market is concerned, the centre has introduced Da Nang enterprises to the Handicrafts Exposition in Italy, the Vietnam Trade Fair in Vientiane of Laos, the Vietnam Trade Week in Myanmar and a number of exhibitions in China, South Korea and Japan. These fairs have offered great opportunities for Da Nang’s enterprises to introduce their products, promote their brand names, seek business partners and enlarge consumption markets.

In parallel with trade promotion activities, the centre has coordinated with relevant bodies to organise courses on professional training and foreign languages. In 2003, in coordination with the Trade Promotion Bureau, the centre introduced a trade promotion course for more than 100 entrepreneurs from the Central provinces.

Upcoming tasks

In 2004, Vietnam is expected to officially introduce the tariff reduction plan in accordance with AFTA and will actively integrate into the regional and international economy. Against this backdrop, in order to increase the effectiveness and importance of trade promotion activities in development and integration, the centre will launch the focal trade promotion program of the city and facilitate enterprises’ participation in foreign expositions. Furthermore, in an effort to develop the city’s potential industries, the centre is developing specific trade promotion plans for each industry. In the immediate future, the centre is making preparations to establish the Wood Production and Export Association and working out a master plan for the development of craft villages. In addition, the centre is actively building information sources and databases on various markets and industries.

• M.N