A 12-member delegation from the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) led by Joseph Michael Kallivayalil, who are visiting Vietnam to explore opportunities for economic engagement, investment and trade, took part in the forum.
Vo Tan Thanh, Director of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI)’s Ho Chi Minh City branch, said the event, with the participation of leading Indian players in the field of infrastructure construction, information technology, aviation, renewable energy, pharmaceuticals, medical equipment and rubber, was a good opportunity for businesses from the two countries to acquire useful information about trade and investment relations between the two sides, and find new business opportunities.
India and Vietnam are both dynamic and rapidly developing economies in Asia, he said, adding trade between the two countries reached US$10.69 billion last year, a year-on-year increase of 40% and they target US$15 billion by 2020.
Indian Ambassador to Vietnam Pranay Verma said Indian investments in Vietnam are worth around US$1.7 billion, including investments routed through third countries. They are mostly in energy, mineral exploration, agro-processing, sugar manufacturing, agro-chemicals, IT and auto components.
The Indian government is encouraging Indian companies to invest in Vietnam, he said, adding that India has set up a project development fund with a corpus of five billion Indian rupees (US$80 million) for Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam to facilitate Indian investment and broaden the manufacturing base of Indian companies in the region.
Kallivayalil highlighted key areas in which businesses from the two countries could enhance cooperation like education, agriculture, manufacturing, electronics, logistics and construction equipment.
In education, for instance, there is a need to promote tie-ups between universities and academic institutions in the two countries for faculty, research and skill exchanges.
In manufacturing, he said that Vietnam offers tremendous opportunities in the manufacturing sector. India needs to properly understand its investment laws and taxation policies to facilitate investments from India.
There is a need to strengthen logistics services between the two countries. India can also access many products manufactured in third countries from Vietnam at competitive prices and with cheaper transportation costs, he added.
The forum was followed by business-to-business meetings to enable a further exchange of information and cooperation opportunities.
