Conference drives Northern Midlands and Mountains' trade expansion efforts

VIETNAM, April 12 - HÀ NỘI — The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) in collaboration with the People's Committee of Lào Cai Province convened a conference on Friday, aimed at bolstering trade activities and import-export operations across the Northern Midlands and Mountainous region.

Drawing about 300 delegates, comprising leaders from relevant localities, representatives from Vietnamese Trade Offices abroad, industry associations and businesses, the gathering delved into pivotal economic concerns within the region.

The conference stemmed from Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính's directive, outlined in Decision 975/QD-TTg dated August 19, 2023 on establishment of a Coordinating Council for the Northern Midlands and Mountainous Region from 2021 to 2025. This council aims to enhance trade promotion, facilitate production partnerships, address supply-demand gaps and promote regional industries and products. It also seeks to empower businesses to leverage Việt Nam's free trade agreements for product development, market expansion and robust import-export activities.

Addressing the conference, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Phan Thị Thắng underscored the significant contribution of the Northern Midlands and Mountainous region to the nation's import-export landscape.

Notably, between 2022 and 2023, amid the post-COVID-19 recovery phase, the region's total import-export turnover exceeded US$119.5 billion and $115.5 billion, respectively, constituting nearly 16 per cent of the nation's total import-export turnover. Export alone amounted to approximately $67.4 billion in 2022 and surpassed $64.8 billion in 2023, equivalent to 18 per cent of the country's total export turnover.

The region boasts a diversified export structure, encompassing key commodities such as computers, electronic components, mobile devices and select agricultural products. The agricultural, forestry and fishery sectors have emerged as regional strengths, transitioning toward commercial production, enhanced efficiency and quality improvement.

However, the region is facing significant challenges, including modest economic scale compared to other regions, and disparities in economic growth among localities, with leading localities such as Thái Nguyên, Bắc Giang, Phú Thọ and Lào Cai outpacing others. The predominance of low-productivity labour in the agricultural sector and the region's sparse business landscape hinder economic dynamism, impeding trade promotion efforts and import-export development.

Addressing these issues head-on, conference attendees focused on key economic imperatives for the region. Discussions centred on establishing export production chains, formulating import-export strategies for forthcoming years, identifying foreign market opportunities and modernising logistics to facilitate export and cross-border trade.

To unlock the region's export potential, Director of MoIT’s Planning and Finance Department Bùi Huy Sơn stressed the importance of innovation, quality training and human resource development. He emphasised the need to refine investment attraction policies to leverage the region's strengths effectively. Furthermore, promoting industrial clusters is essential for local industrial development.

Vice chairman of Lào Cai People’s Committee Hoàng Quốc Khánh said the province aims to spearhead investments in transport infrastructure, particularly railway connectivity, to enhance national and inter-regional linkage, including border gate connectivity.

Plans are underway to transform the Lào Cai Border Gate Economic Zone into a cutting-edge logistics hub, facilitating seamless trade connections and serving as a pivotal transit point for import-export activities, Khánh said.

Meanwhile, Sơn La Province and other regional counterparts aim to bridge income and trade development disparities by fostering regional connectivity, facilitating industrial infrastructure development and leveraging governmental incentives to attract investment projects and spur value-added industries.

In a bid to elevate the Northern Midlands and Mountains' trade standing, Director of the Trade Promotion Agency Vũ Bá Phú outlined plans for enhanced trade promotion programmes in 2024. These initiatives include international trade missions to strategic markets such as Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, France, South Africa and the United States, alongside participation in prominent domestic and international trade fairs and exhibitions.

Local trade promotion centres will also play a pivotal role in information dissemination and exhibitions, harnessing regional resources and strengthening export endeavours, particularly with neighbouring markets like Laos and China, according to Phú. — VNS