Over 1 million Vietnamese tourists travelled to Cambodia in 2023, becoming Cambodia's second largest tourist source market after Thailand, according to the Cambodian Ministry of Tourism.

In 2023, the neighboring country welcomed 5.45 million foreign visitors, up 139.5 percent against 2022. Thailand topped the list of tourist arrivals with 1.8 million.

Specifically, a half of foreign arrivals selected Cambodia after visiting Thailand and Viet Nam, said Chhay Sivlin, President of the Cambodia Association of Travel Agents.

Earlier, Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his Cambodian counterpart Hun Manet agreed to increase direct flights between Ha Noi and Siem Reap while co-chairing the Cambodia-Viet Nam Trade and Investment Promotion Forum held on December 12, 2023.

During a working trip to Cambodia from May 4-6, 2023 on the occasion of the 32nd Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games 32), Vietnamese Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyen Van Hung and Minister of Tourism Thong Khon signed a Memorandum of Understanding on tourism cooperation between the countries.

The two sides agreed to bolster the exchange of road tourism, especially self-driving car tourism, by facilitating cross-border tourism while encouraging tourism businesses of the two countries to develop tourism packages, including cultural and heritage tourism, sport tourism and culinary tourism in order to diversify tourism products through sports events, food exhibitions and culinary forums.

Protocol expected to raise Vietnamese watermelon shipments to China

The recent signing of a protocol regarding the export of Vietnamese watermelon to China via official channels will help deter trade risks, boost the standard of the farm produce, and ease congestion at border gates, Director of the Plant Protection Department Huynh Tan Dat has said.

In an interview with the Lao dong (labour) newspaper, the official said in the long term, as a result of the document, the links among growers as well as between them and packaging establishments and exporters will be strengthened, promoting a standardised production process, the application of good farming practices and sci-tech advances, and the forming of quality and environmentally friendly products. They are all conducive to sustainable exports for watermelon growers.

Under the protocol signed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) and General Administration of Customs China (GACC), fresh watermelon permitted to enter the Chinese market must come from the cultivation and processing establishments approved by both agencies. All plantations involved must cultivate the plants following the Good Agricultural Practices (GAP).

The negotiation for the pact began in late 2019 and its signing took place in December last year, with Vietnam now completing all procedures for the exports of the fruit to China, according to Dat.

As a result, the annual export value of the farm produce is likely to reach 70-80 million USD from the current 50 million USD, Secretary General of the Vietnam Fruit & Vegetables Association Dang Phuc Nguyen has predicted.

Investment in Hanoi’s urban railway line No.2 to increase by US$650 million

The No.2 urban railway line is expected to play a crucial role in the public transportation network, easing the ever-increasing severe traffic congestion in the capital's central area.

 In its latest proposal to the Government, the Hanoi People's Committee has proposed to increase the investment capital for the urban railway line No.2, section Nam Thang Long – Tran Hung Dao, by VND16 trillion (US$650 million) to VND35.58 trillion ($1.5 billion).

The project’s feasibility study report was approved by the Hanoi People's Committee in November 2008. The railway line was originally expected to be operational by 2015, but the completion timeline has continuously been revised.

In terms of construction scale, the total length of the route remains the same as previously approved at 11.5 kilometers. However, the lengths of the elevated and underground sections have been adjusted. Specifically, the elevated section has increased from 8.5 kilometers to 8.9 kilometers, while the underground section has decreased from 3 kilometers to 2.6 kilometers.

Simultaneously, in this proposal, Hanoi expected the project to be operational by 2029, with the following two years dedicated to operation and maintenance training.

Additionally, the Hanoi People's Committee stated that the plan to construct the underground station C9 beneath Dinh Tien Hoang Street – a key component of the project, which is located in front of the Hanoi Power Corporation, the Northern Power Corporation, and the headquarters of the Hanoi People's Council and People's Committee, only adjusts the position of the station body and its structure to ensure technical safety within the corridor of the route.

Along with this, the construction plan for station C9 does not violate the Hoan Kiem Lake Heritage Protection Zone II, does not affect the safety of cultural structures, and preserves historical, cultural, and architectural values.

According to Conclusion No.49 of the Politburo, Hanoi is tasked with completing nearly 405 kilometers of urban railway over the next 12 years, requiring a budget allocation of approximately $37 billion.

A report from the Hanoi Urban Transport Management Board stated that station C9 has been reevaluated with three location options, taking into account feedback. Among these, option 1, after adjustment, has been submitted to the Prime Minister. In this scenario, underground station C9 will be located outside Protection Zone II of Hoan Kiem Lake's heritage, constructed as a 4-tier stacked station. The structure of the station body aligns with the boundary of Protection Zone II, with a length of 202.4 meters, a width of 15 meters, and a depth of approximately 31 meters.

The station is situated on a curve with a radius of 800 meters, below Dinh Tien Hoang Street, in front of the Hanoi Power Corporation, the Northern Power Corporation, and the headquarters of the Hanoi People's Council and People's Committee.

The station will be equipped with two access points at the originally proposed locations. To provide sufficient space for the cooling tower, a 13-meter-high ventilation system, and a power generator room, an additional 705 square meters of land will need to be acquired from the Hanoi Power Corporation (an increase of 260 square meters from the original proposal). Additionally, approximately 25 square meters of land will be taken from the Hanoi People's Council and People's Committee to ensure smooth construction.

Project No.2 of the urban railway system - Noi Bai - Nam Thang Long - Hoang Hoa Tham - Bo Ho - Hang Bai - Dai Co Viet - Thuong Dinh plays a crucial role in connecting Noi Bai Airport to the city center, serving as a central axis and connecting with the beltway.

The project has a length of 11.5 kilometers, of which 2.6 kilometers are elevated and 8.9 kilometers underground, with 3 elevated stations (C1 to C3) and 7 underground stations (C4 to C10). The project utilizes ODA funds from Japan and was approved by the Hanoi People's Committee in the Feasibility Study Report under Decision No. 2054/QD-UBND on November 13, 2008.

The No.2 urban railway line is expected to play a crucial role in the public transportation network, alleviating the worsening traffic congestion in the central area of the capital.

Airlines, railways increase seats amid rising travel demand during Tet

Air and railway transport service suppliers have announced that they will continue increase seats for customers during the upcoming Lunar New Year (Tet) holidays to meet the rising travelling demands on the occasion of the most important festival of Vietnamese people in a year.

Vietnam Airlines Group, which consists of Vietnam Airlines, Pacific Airlines and VASCO, said that it will provide an additional 66,200 seats on 310 domestic flights for customers in the period from January 25 to February 24, or the 15th day of the last month of the year of the Cat and the 15th day of the first month in the year of the Dragon.

With this adjustment, Vietnam Airline Group will raise its total number of domestic and international flights during Tet to 12,374 with about 2.64 million seats.

The additional flights are mostly on routes connecting Ho Chi Minh City with Hanoi, Da Nang, Hai Phong, Vinh (Nghe An province), Thanh Hoa, Quy Nhon (Binh Dinh), Hue (Thua Thien-Hue), Quang Nam, Tuy Hoa (Phu Yen), Da Lat (Lam Dong), Cam Ranh (Nha Trang), Buon Ma Thuot (Dak Lak), Pleiku (Gia Lai), and Phu Quoc (Kien Giang), serving customers’ demands to return home for family reunion and travel.

At the same time, Vietravel Airlines reported that so far, it has received bookings for 89% of its flights and even over 97% of flights in particular routes during the holidays.

Meanwhile, the Vietnam Railways said that it will provide about 200,000 seats during the upcoming Tet festival.

The Hanoi Railway Transport JSC will add 3,500 seats to different routes, while the Saigon Railway Transport JSC also announced that it will operate eight additional trains, mostly on the Ho Chi Minh City-Hanoi route. To date, the Saigon Railway Transport JSC has sold more than 152,000 tickets for Tet.

Green production helps secure sustainable agriculture: Experts

Promoting green production is not only an important factor to ensure the sustainable development of the agriculture sector but also a requirement from the market, according to experts.

At a rice processing factory of Vinh Binh Food One Member Company Limited in the Mekong Delta province of An Giang, about 50% of the total 16,000 tonnes of rice husk produced each year from the processing of 80,000 tonnes of rice have been used as fuel for rice drying. The remainder are pressed into husk firewood for sale.

By taking advantage of available rice husk, the factory has saved 30% of energy consumption for the rice drying process, while earning 3.2 billion VND (130,266 USD) from selling husk firewood each year.

Furthermore, ash from burned husk for rice drying can be used to fertilise fields and improve soil quality, reducing environmental pollution.

In fact, circular agriculture has been practiced by Vietnamese farmers for long, but with a small scale. However, as Vietnam has become one of the leading exporters of agro-forestry-aquatic products, the requirement of reusing agricultural waste and by-products has also increased.

Le Duc Thinh, Director of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD)’s Department of Cooperatives and Rural Development, said that circular agriculture is a closed production cycle, where waste is reused as raw materials for production, thereby reducing negative impacts on the environment and protecting the ecosystem and people’s health.

Dr. Tran Cong Thang, Director of the Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development, said that in order to develop circular economy in agriculture, it is crucial to promote science-technology research and application.

Currently, the country’s annual agricultural by-product amount is about 156.8 million tonnes, mostly from cultivation and breeding activities.

Tong Xuan Chinh, Vice Director of the MARD’s Department of Livestock Production, said that in order to sustainably, diversely and effectively use the huge agro-forestry-aquatic by-product resources, the State should provide comprehensive policies to provide optimal conditions for organic fertiliser production, while completing the legal conditions for organic and circular agricultural development, and supporting businesses and cooperatives, especially small and medium-sized enterprises. Greater investment in technology for organic fertilisers is also needed, he said.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phung Duc Tien said that as the rate of treated agricultural waste and by-products has been modest, in the coming time, Vietnam should work harder to promote circular economy in agriculture to better protect the environment and increase the added values of agricultural products, thus developing an agricultural sector towards green, modern and sustainable direction.

MoT asks VMA to support shipping container goods to Europe, America

Facing the rising cost of container shipping services to Europe and America, the Ministry of Transport (MoT) has just sent an official dispatch to the Vietnam Maritime Administration (VMA) requesting support for businesses.

Accordingly, the MoT requests the VMA to preside and coordinate with relevant agencies and units to ensure a smooth seaport system nationwide.

At the same time, the ministry requests the administration create favourable conditions for the transportation of import and export goods, and research and immediately deploy solutions to improve the efficiency of maritime infrastructure exploitation.

The VMA is also assigned to speed up port entry and exit procedures and the loading and unloading of goods for ships transporting import and export goods, especially container goods to the Americas and Europe.

It is also required to urgently work with shipping lines that have transport routes to the Americas and Europe, to call on shipping lines to maintain routes, and add berths and container shells to Vietnam, to meet cargo transport needs.

The MoT assigned the VMA to research policy mechanisms to attract container shipping companies to open new routes to Vietnam, and continue and urgently research reducing and simplifying administrative procedures, especially procedures related to ship operations.

As for the Vietnam Maritime Administration, the normal transport route from Asia to Europe goes through the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, as this is the shortest route with optimal cost.

However, due to conflicts in the Red Sea area since the end of last year, shipping companies have had to change routes, not going through the Suez Canal but having to go around the Cape of Good Hope, extending ship journeys by 10 - 14 days compared to before, incurring more shipping costs, and leading to higher shipping prices and possible shortage of containers.

Seafood exports enjoy bright prospects in Swiss market

Vietnamese businesses should make greater efforts to tap the potential of seafood exports to Switzerland, a trade official said.

Nguyen Duc Thuong, Commercial Counsellor at Vietnam Trade Office in Switzerland, said that as a landlocked country, Switzerland had to import almost all of its seafood.

Each year, the Swiss market consumes about 75,000-80,000 tonnes of seafood and Vietnam is the fourth largest seafood provider for Switzerland, after Norway, France and the Netherlands, Thuong told baochinhphu.vn.

He said Switzerland's import demand for seafood products would likely increase by 4.6% this year, with the consumption trend gradually moving towards organic products.

Therefore, Vietnamese businesses needed to foster their investments in processing seafood products and exporting organic products to capture this consumption opportunity, and at the same time enhance links with existing partners.

According to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP), enterprises that intend to promote export to this market need to pay attention to product quality issues as Switzerland requires very high-quality products with a very strict import licensing regime to ensure health, food hygiene and safety standards.

All food sold in Switzerland has to comply with European and Swiss food labelling regulations. Consumers in this country are very interested in eco-labels and are willing to pay extra if the product meets health and environmental requirements.

Besides, Switzerland attaches great importance to the MSC (Marine Stewardship Council) standard and has for many years been the country with the largest consumption of MSC-labelled seafood products in the world.

Demand for seafood with MSC certification is increasing. There are many companies trading whitefish, salmon, herring and tuna in Switzerland that have obtained COC (chain of safety certification) and used the MSC label on their seafood products.

Over the past nine months of 2023, two-way trade between Vietnam and Switzerland saw a modest increase of 2 per cent to over 1.85 billion USD. Of the total, over 1.42 billion USD came from Vietnamese exports, down 2% year-on-year.

Russian products eye Vietnam’s hotels at Moscow seminar

A seminar took place in Moscow on January 23, as part of a trade connectivity project, aiming to bring more Russian products into Vietnam’s hotels.

Co-hosted by the Russia-Vietnam Friendship Association (RVFA), the Russia-Vietnam Business Association (RVBA) and the Vietnam Hotel Association (VHA), the event focused on services and products catering to hotels and tourists in various areas such as construction, infrastructure, modern equipment, natural health and beauty care and food.

Attending the event were CEOs, major shareholders and marketing directors of about 40 companies representing various sectors in Russia and several other countries.

A representative of VHA highlighted Vietnam's achievements in economic development, noting its membership in numerous new-generation free trade deals and its confidence in burgeoning fields such as semiconductor technology and rapid digitalisation across sectors. Additionally, Vietnam's substantial export of familiar with Russian firms was also underscored.

VHA Chairwoman Do Thi Hong Xoan expressed readiness to welcome and assist Russian enterprises in exploring and establishing partnerships. She also promised incentives for stakeholders in projects, such as facilitating Russian products’ access to Vietnam's commercial system through the shortest route.

Representing the Vietnam Automation Association in Russia, Mai Hong underscored the significance of direct contacts and product introductions. She illustrated this point with a case where a Russian business, initially intending to sign an agreement with a Vietnamese partner, successfully concluded deals with multiple Vietnamese provinces following a trade promotion trip to the country.

Building on the success of this trip, Director of the RVFA’s Enterprise Centre Regina Budarina announced plans for another fact-finding trip to six Vietnamese cities and provinces in March.

The event reached its end with the signing of sci-tech cooperation agreements between the Vietnam Automation Association in Russia and the RVBA, as well as between the RVFA and the RVBA.

Dak Lak exports first official batch of bird's nests to Chinese market

Thanh Dung Bird's Nest Import-Export Joint Stock Company in the central highlands province of Dak Lak has hosted a ceremony to mark the official export of the first batch of bird's nest worth VND12 billion to the Chinese market, according to details given by the People's Committee of Dak Lak province.

Local authorities underscored the importance of the event in terms of opening up a wealth of opportunities for local businesses as they seek to gain entry to the market with the most potential in the world.

Furthermore, the official export of bird's nests to the Chinese market will further help the local bird’s nest industry to thrive moving forward, bringing about high economic value to both farmers and export businesses.

Pham Thi Phuong Dung, chairman of the Board of Directors of the Thanh Dung Bird's Nest Import-Export Joint Stock Company, said the firm has been recently approved by the General Department of Customs of China for the first export batch with 300 kilo of bird's nest worth VND12 billion.

In order to secure a firm foothold in the Chinese market, the People's Committee of Dak Lak province has requested that Thanh Dung Bird's Nest Import-Export Joint Stock Company, processing facilities, and local households move to strengthens linkages, apply advanced technologies, and enhance product quality and design as a means of fully tapping into the potential of the Chinese market and other markets around the world.

Source: VNA/SGT/VNS/VOV/Dtinews/SGGP/VGP/Hanoitimes