Vietnamese and South African businesses increase cooperation

During the talk, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Quoc Cuong confirmed that Vietnam attracted foreign investors by its political and economic stability, integration into the world economy via bilateral and multilateral trade agreements and improving workforce quality. Moreover, the Vietnamese Government is making continuous efforts to further improve the investment, cooperation and trade environment.

Appreciating the increasingly developing relationship between Vietnam and South Africa, he noted that the bilateral trade ties were still modest, at USD1 billion per year, compared to Vietnam’s total goods and service turnover of USD450 billion and South Africa’s USD230 billion in 2018.

“The two countries need to promote cooperation among businesses,” he added.

Sindiswa Mququ, Head of South, Central and Southeast Asia under the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO), suggested that the two countries should open cooperation space for businesses. “They need to promote bilateral trade and narrow the trade gap,” she said.

The South African and Vietnamese Governments are willing to make favorable conditions for businesses to promote cooperation, investment and trade through legal foundations.

During the talk, representatives from the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade gave an introduction about the country’s strengths in agriculture, services, tourism and textile and garment.

Many South African businesses expressed interest in Vietnam’s agricultural products and set up channels for promoting cooperation in the upcoming time./.