The event was co-hosted by the Institute for African and Middle East Studies (IAMES) and the Institute for Religious Studies (IRS) under the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences.
Speaking at the event, IAMES General Director Asso. Prof Le Phuoc Minh said the event not only popularises knowledge about Islamic culture, including customs, traditions, and taboos in the lives of the Muslim communities in the world and Vietnam but also raises public awareness of the Halal industry among Vietnamese policymakers, managers, researchers, businesses and people. It is also expected to open up opportunities for Vietnam to engage in the global Halal value chain, diversify its export markets, attract Muslim tourists and substantial investment from Muslim-majority nations worldwide while strengthening cooperative ties between Vietnam and 57 member countries of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).
IRS Director Asso. Prof Chu Thanh Tuan said the Muslim community groups over 32,000 followers in 14 Vietnamese cities and provinces. Vietnam only has about 20 export items to the Halal market, which is a remarkably low number. As much as 40% of Vietnamese localities lack certified Halal export products.
In mid-2021, the IAMES was the first State agency to set up a research taskforce known as the Vietnam Halal Centre of Excellence (Vietnam Halal COE) whose efforts have been recognised by the embassies of African and Middle East countries, the Foreign Ministry, ministries and agencies.
The IMAES is also continuing its research and utilisation of its staff resources, collaborating with regional and international research institutes to contribute to the development of the Halal industry in Vietnam.
