Kien Giang lures 1.77-billion-USD-investment in six months

The Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang licensed 24 projects, including three foreign direct investment (FDI) projects, with a combined registered capital of 40.31 trillion VND (1.77 billion USD), 3.6 times higher than the number of 2016. 

Currently, the province has 712 projects, including 47 FDI ones, worth 540 trillion VND (23.78 billion USD).

The projects are invested mainly in tourism, agriculture, processing and manufacturing industries, petroleum transport, trade and services. 

Pham Vu Hong, Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, said Kien Giang will continue investing in infrastructure construction and call for more investment into industrial parks, particularly in its key sectors.

The province will create favourable conditions for investors to deploy licensed projects and speed up the progress of construction projects, he said, adding that Kien Giang will also simplify administrative procedures in the time to come.

Agriculture sector targets 33 billion USD from exports in 2017

The agriculture sector will have to make greater efforts to fulfil three major targets set for this year with responsibility given to leaders of each units.

Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong made the affirmation at a conference in Hanoi on June 30 to review the sector’s performances in the first half of this year and lay out orientations for the second half.

The targets include a growth rate of 3.05 percent, 33 billion USD in export turnover of agro-forestry-aquatic products, and 31 percent of the country’s communes nationwide meeting the new-style rural area building standards.

Cuong underlined difficulties related to market and weather condition facing the sector over the first six months of this year, saying that most of the basic targets set by the Government have been fulfilled.

However, the Minister pointed out shortcomings, particularly the poor, unsustainable value chain, low investment, a lack of closed production lines, poor qualifications of personnel and loose coordination among stakeholders.

The minister also highlighted challenges the sector is likely to face in the second half of the year, particularly difficulties on both domestic and foreign markets, as well as weaknesses in processing and marketing.

Hoang Thanh Van, Director of the Ministry’s Department of Animal Husbandry, mentioned the sluggish growth in livestock breeding, particularly in pig farming.

He suggested the ministry instruct localities to join hands in helping local farmers to enhance the efficiency of the animal husbandry.

Minister Cuong said conferences will be organised to seek ways to boost exports of chicken meat and pork, not only to the Chinese market but also other markets.

He stressed the need to restructure the livestock sector, saying that all units must review their planning schemes taking in account market and climate change factors.

According to Vu Duc Hung, Vice Director of the Ministry’s Department of Planning, the agriculture sector recorded a growth rate at 2.65 percent in the first half of 2017, with the highest increases seen in aquatic products (5.08 percent) and in forestry (4.31 percent).

The export value of agro-forestry-aquatic products reached 17.1 billion USD, up 13.1 percent from the same period last year. 

By the end of June, as many as 2,745 communes were recognised as new-style rural areas, or 30.76 percent of the total nation’s number, up 89 communes as compared to the same period last year. Thirty four districts got the new-style rural area status, an increase of 11 districts from the end of 2016.

Exports of aquatic products surge in six months

Vietnam’s export turnover of aquatic products was estimated at 653 million USD in June, raising the total figure in the first half of this year to 3.5 billion USD, up 14.1 percent year-on-year, reported the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

The increase was attributed to the growth in exports of seafood, especially tuna. 

Vietnam’s tuna export earnings gained a year-on-year increase of 20 percent to 216 million USD in the first five months. The country also earned 199 million USD from shipping squids and octopus abroad, up 39 percent against the same period last year.

The Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP)’s statistics showed that the US, the European Union, Japan, China and the Republic of Korea (RoK) remained Vietnam’s largest importers of aquatic products, accounting for 54.6 percent of the total export turnover.

However, decreases were seen in the US and EU markets, down 12.7 percent and 0.7 percent respectively. Meanwhile, the Japanese, Chinese and RoK markets reported impressive growth, up 29.3 percent, 20.1 percent, and 26.1 percent, respectively.

Domestic aquatic product processors, which had been affected seriously by the Formosa environmental incident in 2016 in the central region, also recorded growth.

Tran Dinh Nam, General Director of the South Ha Tinh Seaproducts Import and Export Joint Stock Company (SHATICO), said that his company’s export value reached only 2.6 million USD last year, but it was estimated at nearly 2 million USD in the first six months of this year.

Vietinbank signs 100-million-USD syndicated loan agreement

The Vietnam Joint Stock Commercial Bank of Industry and Trade (Vietinbank) has signed a syndicated loan agreement worth 100 million USD with eight foreign financial institutions.

The institutions are Deutsche Bank AG – Singapore branch, Commerzbank AG – Luxembourg branch, Erste Group Bank AG, E.SUN Commercial Bank Ltd., CTBC Bank Co.Ltd Singapore, First Commercial Bank – Overseas branch, State Bank of India-Singapore, and Taishin International Bank. 

The signing of the agreement has not only asserted the prestige of Vietinbank on the international financial market but also reflected the confidence of investors as well as international financial institutions, said Tran Minh Binh, Vietinbank Deputy General Director.

He spoke highly of the cooperation with eight banks under the arrangement of the Deutsche Bank AG – Singapore branch, adding that the agreement will open up more opportunities for collaboration between Vietinbank and these partners.

With this 100 million USD, Vietinbank pledges to better serve capital demand of major Vietnamese enterprises, he added.

Fruit, vegetable imports hit 655 million USD in first half

Vietnam spent almost 655 million USD on importing fruits and vegetables in the first half of this year, representing a year-on-year increase of 87 percent. 

Of the number, import value of fruits was 507 million USD, according to the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association.

Thailand was Vietnam’s largest fruit supplier, making up 57.7 percent of the market share, followed by India, the Republic of Korea and China.  

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development revealed that between January and June, Vietnam imported more than 376 million USD worth of fruits from Thailand.

Siemens, EVN open control centre in HCM City

Siemens and the Electricity of Vietnam Southern Power Corporation (EVN SPC) has opened a new main control centre in Ho Chi Minh City.

The centre, whose facilities were designed and built by Siemens, will remotely monitor and control the medium- and low-voltage grids in 21 provinces in the south.

“This project will significantly improve the availability and efficiency of the distribution grids in this region and reduce power outages, thus contributing to the economic development,” Siemens said in its statement.

“EVN’s new network control centre enables it to respond flexibly and in a cost-efficient manner to the current and future challenges of ensuring reliable network operation. For EVN, this means an improvement in both its operational efficiency and quality of service,” said Thomas Zimmermann, CEO of the Business Unit Digital Grid, Siemens Energy Management Division.

Nguyen Van Hop, EVN SPC President and CEO, said the centre would help his company to improve remarkably the efficiency and reliability of the distribution network in 21 provinces and cities in the south.

“We will be able to create sustainable values not only in the region but also for our company through higher productivity and significant cost-saving,” Hop said.

Vietnam seeks EU smart city know-how

Ho Chi Minh City needs Europe’s experience and solutions to create smart cities, a conference heard on June 30. 

Speaking at the “Cyber security, Internet of Things and Connected Services towards a smart city” conference, organised by the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam (EuroCham), Vo Quang Hue, vice chairman of EuroCham, said: “The Smart Cities subject is one of great importance for EuroCham Vietnam. EuroCham believes its members have a lot to offer for Vietnam’s sustainable development.

“The relevant know-how developed and tested in Europe and all over the world needs no introduction and we are very keen to promote contacts between relevant companies and the Vietnamese Government for business opportunities that can produce concrete results in terms of a smart future for Vietnam’s cities.” 

Philip Hung Cao, security solution consultant at Palo Alto Networks, feared cyber security would be a nightmare for a smart city.

“All parts of a connected city like field components, data transmission network, data processing and of a smart city like data aggregation connectivity and smart processing face the threat of attack.”

He listed all the possible threats to smart cities like eavesdropping/wiretapping, unauthorised use/access, tampering/alteration, theft, distributed denial of services (DDos) and loss of reputation due to hacking besides hardware failure/multifunction, software error, operator/user error, electrical and frequency disturbance/interference, end of support obsolescence, acts of nature, and environmental incidents.

To avoid the security threats, he suggested seven solutions: building a risk-based approach to cyber security; setting clear priorities; defining minimum ICT security baselines; sharing and co-ordinating threats and vulnerability information; building incident response capabilities; boosting public awareness, education and workforce training; and enabling public, private and academic co-operation.

Guru Mallikarjuna, vice chairman of EuroCham’s information communication technology sector committee, and managing director, Robert Bosch Engineering and Business Solutions Vietnam Co.ltd, said: “Internet of Things is the basis for a broad smart city competency, and by 2020 four billion people will be connected with 25 million applications, 50 trillion gigabytes of data and 25 billion intelligent systems.”

He also listed challenges and solutions for mobility, energy and security, the three pillars of a smart city.

The challenges facing mobility are the need to reorganise/revitalise existing infrastructure and having a connected and efficient public transportation, he said.

The solutions are intelligent parking, fleet monitoring and management and intelligent traffic management, he said.

The challenges facing energy supply include management of peak demand, environmental impacts, improvement of existing infrastructure and their solutions are energy management, smart grid (metering, software) and smart water meters, he said.

The security challenges are public security (mass events, crime) and the impacts of natural disasters and video surveillance, emergency services and disaster response are the solutions, he added.

To grasp the opportunities in the context of the “fourth industrial revolution” and address various socio-economic issues, the Government has recently begun adopting measures to encourage cities to become smart cities. 

Actions and initiatives have been taken with respect to several information and communication technology breakthroughs which are central to this shift like Internet of Things, Data Flow, Connected Services, e-governance, autonomous vehicles, artificial intelligence, robotics, and others.

Hai Phong city welcomes 3 million tourists first half of 2017

The alluring landscapes of Do Son, Hon Dau, Cat Ba island and many other historic and cultural sites helped the northern port city of Hai Phong draw 3.07 million holiday-makers in the first half of the year, up 10.7 percent from the same period in 2016.

Of the total number, over 355,500 foreigners visited the city in the period.

According to Vice Chairman of the city People’s Committee Nguyen Xuan Binh, breakthroughs in infrastructure are a tremendous drive for the city’s tourism development. 

Tan Vu-Lach Huyen bridge, Bach Dang bridge, expansion of National Highway 10 and Hanoi-Hai Phong highway - the most modern expressway in Vietnam - have connected Hai Phong city and other localities nationwide, Binh said.

Construction has begun on Nguyen Binh Khiem flyover as well as Hoang Van Thu, Tam Bac, Han and Dang bridges and a coastal road connecting Hai Phong city and its neighbouring Thai Binh province.

In addition, projects invested by large groups like Vingroup and Sungroup will give a facelift to the city, including a Vincom shopping mall, a complex of entertainment zone, housing and eco-park on Vu Yen island and a tourism complex on Cat Ba and Cat Hai islands.

The expansion of Cat Bi International Airport will help the city connect with the international aviation industry while creating a boost for the city’s socio-economic development. Travel agents in and outside the city have joined hands with some carriers like Vietnam Airlines and Vietjet Air to increase flight frequency to meet travel demands from customers.

Hai Phong city is making a beeline to develop standout tourism brand and products as well as works to improve human resource quality.

CIEM suggests restructuring committee

A national steering committee for economic restructuring should be founded to accelerate the efficiency of the economic overhaul process, the Central Institute for Economic Management (CIEM) proposed at a workshop held in Hanoi on June 30.

The steering committee would focus on speeding up restructuring and improving economic productivity, CIEM said.

Dinh Trong Thang, Head of CIEM’s Investment Policy Department, said that the State now manages assets worth about 600 billion USD, half of which are controlled by State-owned enterprises (SOEs) while the rest is land, transport infrastructure and minerals, each estimated at 100 billion USD.

Thang said that during 2016-20, economic management policies should focus on increasing productivity towards prosperity and improving social welfares.

The Government needs more measures to improve competitiveness, capacity, transport infrastructure and human resources while cutting costs through simplifying administrative procedures and land fees as well as gradually cutting interest rates, said Thang.

Thang stressed that a steering committee to guide comprehensive restructuring was necessary.

All ministries and State management agencies must be accountable for their restructuring efforts and results to the steering committee.

Economic expert Bui Trinh said that the economic structure of Vietnam had issues in all sectors, which required a comprehensive and synchronous overhaul.

Trinh added that economic restructuring must prioritise protecting the environment for sustainable development.

The Government’s restructuring plan for 2016-20 set goals to renovate the growth model, improving growth quality, productivity and competitiveness.

Restructuring priorities were given to developing the private economy, restructuring SOEs, public investment, State budget and public services, restructuring the financial market, restructuring major markets (land, labour and science and technology) and modernising economic zones.

Quang Ninh’s export earnings increase by 6.7 percent in first half

The northern province of Quang Ninh earned 749 million USD from exports in the first half of 2017, 45.3 percent of its yearly goal.

According to the provincial Department of Planning and Investment, turnover was up 6.7 percent from a year ago.

Notably, shipping 970,000 tonnes of coal raked in 115.3 million USD, a year-on-year increase of 32 percent.

Other export goods that witnessed an increase included textiles, up 27.2 percent; wolfram, 27.3 percent, cement, 7.2 percent; candle, 9.7 percent and vegetable oil, 5.7 percent.

Imports from local businesses during the period were valued at 854.7 million USD, up 4.89 percent compared to the same period last year and representing 30.5 percent of the yearly plan.

The locality also earned 939 million USD, growing by 2.86 percent against the previous year, from temporary import and re-export activities.

Startup develops app that allows diners to book tables with discounts

Restaurant reservation application PasGo was launched in Vietnam in 2014 to present a complete tech solution for both diners and restaurants.

When you have plans to eat out, a lot of questions will pop up: Where, what and when to eat? And what about discounts? To find the answers, many people usually turn to restaurant reviews and spend time looking for vouchers and discounts online, which can be inconvenient, said a PasGo representative.

The internet can be a double-edged sword as it offers a lot of information but it's difficult to decide on which sites to trust, and even when you do buy coupons online, you still want to book tables.

“How can I find the right restaurant, save money, and book a table before arriving? We realized diners would love a solution to all of those questions, so we created PasGo,” said the company representative.

The developers of PasGo are constantly studying market trends and catching up with new technologies to create a product that can meet the best interests of both diners and restaurants in Vietnam.

Through the app, you can find the nearest restaurant using a map to show you the way. You can also choose from top restaurants without having to spend time reading a review, find discounts and book tables a the click of a button.

The app is able to filter options to find the restaurant that suits your taste in terms of price, location and quality. It can even fulfill special requests such as finding an eatery that can cater for hundreds of people at once, or that has a private room or romantic seats, and all free of charge.

PasGo helps restaurants advertise for free and attract customers during off-peak hours, as well as introducing new dishes.

“This is the optimal solution for restaurants to manage and use their capital as it is based on their actual situations instead of creating wholesaling coupons,” said the representative.

Over the past three years, PasGo has connected 700 restaurants in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City with diners, and serves tens of thousands of users each day, creating the same amount of promotions and discounts.

It has been loyal to its philosophy of only working with high-quality restaurants to help users feel secure about their choices.

"We know this is not an easy path but the team at PasGo are consistent, and we hope the success of PasGo will encourage restaurants to pay more attention to their food and service,” the representative said.

Seafood processing fuels export in Tien Giang

Agricultural exports in the Mekong Delta province of Tien Giang hit 1.14 billion USD in the first half of 2017, up 25.4 percent year on year.

According to Ngo Van Tuan, director of the provincial Department of Industry and Trade, shipments of processed seafood, particularly Tra fish, drove the export growth. 

The 6-month export value of local fishery commodities, of which 90 percent were Tra fish products, increased 5.3 percent from last year to 132.6 million USD. 

Tien Giang Tra fish has to date been exported to 50 markets across the globe.

Rice exports were also a highlight, growing 50 percent during the period compared to last year, with more than 115,000 tonnes of rice shipped overseas, reeling in 55.7 million USD.

Tuan said the outcomes are a good start for Tien Giang to realise its export goal of 2.35 billion USD for 2017. The target represents a year-on-year climb of 11.4 percent.

The outcomes also reflects efforts from local authorities and business communities, he noted, adding that the province is working to overcome trade barriers by overhauling local production assembly lines to ensure food safety and goods origins.

IT outsourcing conference in October

Việt Nam’s software industry and investment environment will be the featured topics at a Việt Nam IT Outsourcing Conference held on October 19-20 at the convention centre at Quang Trung Software City in HCM City’s District 12.

With a fast-growing economy and a large pool of talent for the engineering workforce, Việt Nam is becoming Asia’s new technology hub, according to organisers of Quang Trung Software City, Investment & Trade Promotion Centre of HCM City, and Việt Nam IT Outsourcing Alliance.

In the past few years, giants like Intel, Samsung, LG, Foxconn, Alcatel-Lucent, Avaya, Bosch, NTT and others have moved their high-tech operations and outsourcing to Việt Nam.

Việt Nam has moved from being an unknown destination to an emerging market for software outsourcing, the organisers said.

The conference is expected to promote the image of Việt Nam as an attractive destination for IT services, while expanding the search for clients and partners for domestic enterprises.

It will help to create an effective business matching platform for buyers and Vietnamese IT outsourcing vendors.

Presentations about human resources, education and training, the labour market and infrastructure will also be held at the conference.

More than 150 multi-national and high-tech companies from over 20 countries are expected to attend, along with 250 top offshore software outsourcing companies in Việt Nam and 20 IT universities.

Ben Tre aims to fetch 400 million USD from exports

The Mekong Delta province of Ben Tre aims to generate 400 million USD from exports in the second half of 2017, according to the provincial Department of Industry and Trade.

To reach the goal, the locality plans to accelerate product promotion, stabilise traditional markets and seek new trade partners, while creating a system of quality and technique regulations for exporters, producers and businesses.

The local department expects to see an increase in export quantity and earnings of several coconut products, garments and textiles as well as handbags in the rest of the year.

In the first six months, local export turnover exceeded 347 million USD, up 3.56 percent year-on-year and making up 41.82 percent of its yearly goal.

Of the sum, more than 240 million USD came from foreign-invested enterprises, while the remaining value was added by local firms, representing 69.43 percent and 30.57 percent of overall export turnover, respectively.

Some major export commodities of the locality, including dry shred coconut and coconut milk, experienced an increase in quantity with shipment of 10,266 tonnes, up 3.97 percent and 28,000 million litres, up 13.55 percent, respectively.

Meanwhile, from January to June, the local garment and textile industry raked in 57 million USD, up 13.9 percent against last year.

Investors to pour $1.77b into Kien Giang     

Twenty-four domestic and foreign investors received investment certificates to pump VND40.31 trillion (US$1.77 billion) into the Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang in the first half of this year, 3.6 times higher than the investment figures of 2016, local authorities have said.

Currently, the province is home to 712 projects, including 47 foreign-invested ones, worth a combined $23.78 billion. The projects are mainly in tourism, agriculture, processing and manufacturing industries, petroleum transport, trade and services.

Pham Vu Hong, chairman of the provincial People’s Committee, said Kien Giang will continue investing in infrastructure construction and calling for more investment in industrial parks, particularly in its key sectors.

The province will create favourable conditions for investors to deploy licensed projects and speed up the progress of construction projects, he said, adding that Kien Giang will also simplify administrative procedures.

Kien Giang aims to mobilise $11.3 billion for socio-economic development by 2020. Of this, 68 per cent will come from the private sector, 13 per cent from the State budget, 6 per cent from foreign direct investment and the remaining 13 per cent from other sources. 

Number of new businesses jumps in first half of 2017     

Nearly 61,300 new enterprises were formed in the country in the first half of this year with total registered capital of more than VND596 trillion (US$26.2 billion).

The figures showed a rise of 12.4 per cent in the number of enterprises and 39.4 per cent in registered capital compared to the same period last year, according to the General Statistics Office (GSO).

However, 10,742 firms were set up in June alone, with total registered capital of VND110.5 trillion ($4.86 billion), marking year-on-year reductions of 2 per cent in the number of enterprises and 7.3 per cent in registered capital.

On average, the registered capital of individual business rose by 24.3 per cent to VND9.7 billion, GSO noted.

The number of businesses in the wholesale and retail sector, which made up 35 per cent of the total number of newly-established firms in the six month period, increased 10.5 per cent year-on-year. Enterprises in construction and manufacturing and processing industries saw yearly rises of 10.7 per cent and 9.7 per cent, respectively.

From January to June, over 37,900 enterprises suspended operations, surging 22 per cent year-on-year, while 4,685 enterprises were dissolved in the period, which was 1 per cent higher than last year’s corresponding period.

The period also saw 15,400 businesses resume operations, up 3.2 per cent.

A separate survey by GSO revealed that 43 per cent of processing and manufacturing firms said their business results were better in the second quarter compared to same period last year. Over 19.2 per cent said they encountered business difficulties while 37.8 per cent reported stable business performance. 

SEO capital divestment still slow     

As many as 19 State-owned enterprises (SOEs) were approved for equitisation as of the middle of June, lower than the same period last year.

Dang Quyet Tien, Deputy Director of the Corporate Finance Department under the Ministry of Finance, made the statement during a meeting in Ha Noi Thursday.

Tien said the reduction in the number of firms approved for equitisation shows continued sluggish progress of divestment and equitisation in Viet Nam.

He gave some examples of SOEs that need to accelerate the equitisation process, such as the Viet Nam Southern Food Corporation, The Electricity of Viet Nam Group and the Viet Nam Rubber Group.

He attributed the slow process at SOEs to the firms’ leaders’ hesitation and lack of assertiveness, adding that the economy’s capital absorption capacity of businesses remains weak.

According to Tien, the larger the scale of a business, the more difficult it is to conduct equitisation. The process requires that each firm clarifies the responsibilities of leaders through various periods, partly affecting their credibility and thus leading to avoidance and delay.

Regarding State capital divestment process, the Ministry of Finance reports that in the first five months of 2017, State units divested VND3.4 trillion (US$150 million) and collected VND14.8 trillion through the divestment. However, a large part of the collection came from the sale of stake the Viet Nam Dairy Products Joint-Stock Company (Vinamilk) late last year, reaching more than VND11 trillion.

At the meeting, Tien also mentioned some contents of the draft decree amending and supplementing some articles of Government’s Decree No 91/2015/ND-CP dated October 13, 2015 on investment of state capital in enterprises and management and use of capital and assets at enterprises, adding that Decree No 91 shows some particular limitations.

Tien said the draft amended the determination of the starting price of state capital when conducting State capital transfer, indicating that the determination of the starting price is made through an organisation competent enough to conduct price evaluation. The firm must ensure that land use rights at the time of state capital transfer are valued correctly.

The draft also stipulates the method of transfer of state capital invested in joint stock companies, adding that the transfer method is different due to two separate cases.

The first case is transferring state capital invested in joint stock companies which have been listed on the stock market or registered for transactions on the Upcom. The second one is transferring state capital invested in joint stock companies which have not been listed or registered for transactions on the Upcom. 

Issues related to supplying modern trade channel discussed     

Quality assurance is the first factor that enables a product to enter supermarkets, delegates told a discussion on bringing goods into the modern retail channel held in HCM City on June 30.

Nguyen Vu Thuan, food merchandise director of MM Mega Market, said goods must ensure traceability of their origin and farm produce and fresh products must meet VietGap, Global Gap and HACCP standards.

Firms that want to supply supermarkets need to understand retailers’ business strategy as well as who their customers are to determine which products are suitable for supply, he said.

Businesses should sit down with retailers to negotiate and make joint business plans like producing retailers’ own brands instead of just focusing on their products, he said.

Pham Thi Ngoc Ha, director of San Hà Company, which has over 30 years’ experience in the meat industry, said the company used to make products for Vissan in the early stages.

It also focused on developing its own brands, she said.

During the co-operation with Vissan, her company got plenty of experience in production and trading, which greatly contributes to its current success, she said.

Tran Van Lieng, chairman of Vinacacao, said if small and medium-sized businesses have innovative and unique products, the modern trade channel should be their target.

He also shared his experience in developing co-branded products for Lotte and Starbucks, saying this is a good chance for a company to promote its brand.

Thuan said MM Mega Market wants to co-operate with suppliers and partners to serve its horeca (hotels, restaurants and catering) customers, mom and pop stores, large offices and manufacturers.

It also wants to partner with enterprises to produce exclusive products, he said.

Businesses have the opportunity to export their products through Thailand’s TCC group, which owns MM Mega Market, he said.

Four containers of farm produce like dragon fruit and sweet potato are being shipped to Thailand every month, and more Vietnamese farm produce would be consumed in that market in future, he said.

The supermarket prefers to source from businesses that produce sustainably, he said.

It has co-operated with more than 650 farmers so far, offering them market information and advice, technical support and support to get VietGap certification and buying large volumes regularly at steady prices, he said.

Tran Le Thuy Trang of Nguyen Tat Thanh University said supermarkets are now very supportive of small businesses, but the latter must offer good quality products and steady supply.

Producers at the event also complained about the long time supermarkets take to make payment, causing difficulties for small firms.

Thuận said the supermarket has different payment policies for different suppliers based on scale and business segment, adding for SMEs supplying fresh food, payment is made in five, seven or 10 days.

Some delegates said distributors’ payment policy would be hard to change, and the Government should set up a fund to support firms supplying modern distribution systems. 

Export value of fruit and vegetables increases     

The export value of vegetables and fruits is estimated at US$1.7 billion in the first half of this year, marking a year-on-year increase of 45 per cent.

A report from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) revealed that vegetables and fruits witnessed the highest growth in the export value of agricultural products, indicating their potential to increase value as well as brand name in the world market.

The country’s vegetables and fruits were exported to some 60 countries and territories and have become key export products of Viet Nam. Their export value is expected to increase to $3 billion this year.

China, the United States, Japan and South Korea are the four leading import markets of Vietnamese vegetables and fruits, accounting for 85 per cent of the total export value. During the period, impressive growth was witnessed in imports, including by Russia (67 per cent), Japan (56 per cent), China (50 per cent) and the United States (23 per cent), as well as South Korea (15 per cent) and Thailand (12 per cent).

Viet Nam’s vegetables and fruits not only maintained their growth rate in export, but also expanded their market.

According to the MARD’s Plant Protection Department, the first batch of large green mangoes grown in the northern mountain province of Son La will be exported to Australia this month.

The giant-sized fruit, priced at VND22,000 (90 cents) per kilogramme, will be exported by Agricare Viet Nam Co., Ltd.

The department said the fruit was grown as per the Vietnamese Good Agriculture Practice (VietGap). The department cooperated with the Hanoi Irradiation Centre to irradiate 3.5 tonnes of Son La mangoes before shipping them to Australia on Wednesday.

“We sent the mango samples to our Australian partners, who appreciated the high quality, sweetness and unique flavour of the fruit,” a department representative said.

The export of Son La mangoes to Australia not only marks growth of the Vietnamese fruit in this market, but also opens opportunities for locals to develop agricultural production, especially orchards in northern mountain provinces such as Son La, where almost the entire population consists of ethnic minorities.

Director of Agricare Viet Nam Dam Quang Thang said the company was not competing in the ripe mango segment, which already had many foreign exporters. Meanwhile, Australia did not have many green mango products, therefore the company decided to invest in and develop this particular product.

“Son La is a northern mountainous area well-known for its mangoes and suitable for the growth of the giant mango variety on a large scale to export to Australia,” Thang said.

Deputy chairman of Son La People’s Committee Lo Minh Hung said the province had prepared plans to develop orchards, especially to grow mangoes, in recent years. The province currently had some 4,000ha of mangos, with productivity of more than 3,000 tonnes per year.

“The province will continue to support farmers to invest in the growth and production of mangoes according to market demand. If the market accepts the product, growers will expand production while businesses will be encouraged to join in exports,” Hung said.

Agricare Viet Nam plans to ship some five tonnes of mango to Australia per week. This amount is not big, but with Australia "opening the door," other markets could follow suit.

Head of MARD’s Plant Quarantine Division Le Son Ha said farmers previously were in the habit of growing and producing what they required, but now they would have to change their mindset, and focus on growing, treatment and packaging according to international standards and market demand.

“If Vietnamese fruit meets requirements to export to Australia and the United States, we believe our fruit can meet the demand of almost all world markets,” Ha said.

The province has set its key task, which is to develop orchards to replace short-term crops on hills to ensure sustainable living for local farmers. It expects to develop 100,000 ha of orchards by 2030, of which 50,000ha are for mango and the rest are for longan and avocado.

Ha said his department was working on procedures to ship lychee to Japan. At present, the country is already exporting longan to the United States, but it needed more time to further negotiate and complete procedures to export longan to Australia and New Zealand.

“Specifically, we will complete the process to export red-flesh and white-flesh dragon fruit to Australia this year,” Ha said.

The growth in export of agricultural products and seafood accelerated after the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area (AANZFTA) came into effect in 2010, which eliminated import duties.

The MARD, in collaboration with the Ministry of Industry and Trade, is working on ways to overcome technical barriers and open the Australian market to new fruits and types of shrimp. 

Regent, BIM Group sign contract for Phu Quoc luxury development     

Regent Hotels & Resorts signed a management agreement with Vietnamese property developer BIM Group on Friday in Ha Noi to manage Regent Phu Quoc - a luxury resort and residential development on Phu Quoc Island.

Regent Phu Quoc, which is expected to be launched in 2019, will increase the global luxury hospitality brand’s property portfolio to nine, from current properties in Beijing, Berlin, Chongqing and Porto Montenegro, as well as Singapore and Taipei, along with pipeline developments in Jakarta and Harbin.

Located at Bai Truong (Long Beach) on the west coast of Viet Nam’s largest island, just 10 minutes drive from the airport, Regent Phu Quoc consists of luxury hotel rooms and private residences in three styles - lake villa, beach villa and sky villa - which offer a magnificent sea view and private pool.

The waterfront property, featuring 400 rooms and world-class facilities, combines indigenous design with the luxurious yet understated essence of Regent Hotels & Resorts to provide guests with an exclusive lifestyle accommodation experience.

Regent Phu Quoc is an important construction of BIM Group’s Phu Quoc Marina, which has an integrated master plan, being developed to become the future tourist mecca of the island.

Doan Quoc Viet, chairman of BIM Group, said the cooperation with Regent Hotels and Resorts would create a property which set new standards for Viet Nam’s tourism industry.

Steven Pan, chairman of Regent Hotels & Resorts, said Asia was the focus of the group’s global expansion plans, given the huge potential for the hospitality industry.

Amid a wave of tourism investment on Phu Quoc Island, Regent with its history of creating benchmarks and new concepts made Regent Phu Quoc stand out due to its exclusivity and uniqueness.

Steven said he was deeply touched with BIM Group’s sustainable development value, adding that preserving nature and the environment and doing business in a harmonious way that benefited society were critical for development.

Founded in the 70s by legendary hotelier Robert H. Burns, Regent is the first truly Asian-based global hospitality group encompassing hotels, resorts and residences.

BIM Group is a diversified corporation with real estate development being one of its spearhead. The group has worked with prestigious design houses, reputable contractors and top property operators to implement its projects in Viet Nam and abroad, such as serviced apartments Fraser Suites Hanoi, Halong Marina Urban Development in Quang Ninh Province and Royal Square – a first-class complex in Vientiane. 

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