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| Chairman of Hai Duong Provincial People's Committee Trieu The Hung personally led the delegation of foreign ambassadors and their spouses to visit the lychee garden in Thanh Ha district. (Photo: Nguyen Hong) |
Behind the story of a successful export of a Vietnamese specialty fruit, from the fields to the “dining tables of the world”, is a journey “full of hardship and difficulty” as shared by Mr. Nguyen Khac Tien, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Ameii Vietnam Joint Stock Company.
To reach high-end markets, especially the US and Japan, the arduous and difficult journey is not only for businesses, but for the entire system, from state management agencies, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, specialized management agencies, businesses and farmers...
The arduous journey
According to information from the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Hai Duong province, in 2023, the total lychee output of the province is estimated to reach 60,000 tons, of which Thanh Ha lychee is about 40,000 tons. Of which, over 50% of the output is exported to traditional and high-end markets.
In a conversation with The Gioi & Viet Nam Newspaper, Mr. Nguyen Khac Tien happily boasted that in 2023, Ameii Vietnam Company alone exported more than 2,000 tons of Thanh Ha lychees. Lychees are purchased from Ameii Vietnam Cooperative (under Ameii Vietnam Joint Stock Company) and production teams that ensure VietGAP and GlobalGAP standards. Fresh lychees are exported by both sea and air to Japan, Singapore, UK, Australia, EU and the Middle East...
Mr. Tien affirmed, “The success of Ameii Vietnam Company in recent times has been very active support from agencies of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, especially Ambassadors in countries such as Japan, Switzerland and some European countries. Even as soon as there was information about the agricultural season, the Ambassadors proactively contacted businesses to plan product introductions.”
For example, in the recent lychee crop, businesses received great attention, support and assistance in implementing trade promotion activities from Ambassador Le Thi Tuyet Mai, Head of the Permanent Delegation of Vietnam in Geneva, Switzerland; or Ambassador Ngo Toan Thang in Kuwait. Through practical activities such as fairs or the Lychee Festival in Kuwait, local consumers know more about Vietnamese agricultural products. Through information channels from the Ambassadors, businesses have more favorable conditions to export to these markets.
Mr. Nguyen Khac Tien affirmed that the promotion channel from Vietnamese representative agencies in other countries has proven its effectiveness. Partners and customers who come to work with businesses through the introduction of Ambassadors are very secure and confident to cooperate.
Ameii Vietnam Company currently has experience exporting over 35 regional agricultural products (such as Tien Giang durian, Ben Tre coconut, Dong Thap mango, Hai Duong and Bac Giang lychee...) to more than 30 countries around the world.
Accordingly, in order to operate effectively, from very early on, the Company has implemented consumption contracts and chain linkages with farmers and cooperatives nationwide. Currently, Ameii Company is implementing planting areas and linking with farmers on an area of about 500 hectares in Thanh Ha district to produce lychees according to VietGAP and GlobalGAP standards, in order to create a stable source of quality raw materials, to increase export output, and improve farmers' income.
"With the goal of considering economic diplomacy as the spearhead, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is committed to being ready and continuing to accompany Hai Duong and other provinces and cities nationwide in promoting the implementation of foreign affairs and international integration, contributing to helping the province recover and develop its socio-economy, affirming its position as a trusted cultural, investment and business destination for international partners." Assistant Minister, Director of the Department of Economic Synthesis, Ministry of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Hang |
Rare experience
Along with the Government's great expectations for economic diplomacy to strengthen advisory work, contribute to the goal of macroeconomic stability and sustainable economic growth; and the Secretariat's issuance of Directive No. 15-CT/TW dated August 10, 2022 on economic diplomacy for development until 2030, with the stature of an important driving force contributing to the realization of the country's development goals and aspirations, according to Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son, in line with the spirit of "taking localities, businesses, and people as the center of service", economic diplomacy enters a new development stage with high expectations, requirements, and a spirit of more drastic, urgent, effective, and substantive implementation.
In that spirit, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Vietnamese representative agencies abroad closely follow domestic needs, further promote support for businesses and localities to promote relations with large foreign partners and corporations; seek new locations, fields and mechanisms to promote the expansion of export markets.
Returning to Thanh Ha - the lychee growing region famous throughout the country, many foreign ambassadors to Vietnam had the opportunity to pick and enjoy lychees for the first time during a tour on June 17, 2022, organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in coordination with the People's Committee of Hai Duong province.
During this trip, the Ambassadors of the countries, their spouses, and many foreign guests participated in many meaningful local activities, visited some lychee gardens for export; visited some packaging facilities exporting lychees to Japan, the US, Australia, etc.
Commenting on the tour, Palestinian Ambassador to Vietnam Saadi Salama, Head of the Diplomatic Mission in Vietnam, said that this was “a rare opportunity for foreigners living in Vietnam. Members of the delegation were able to visit the ancestral lychee tree and learn about the origin of lychee, a very special and delicious fruit of Vietnam”.
It is known that Thanh Ha lychee originated nearly 200 years ago. This is the only agricultural product of Hai Duong among 39 Vietnamese products with exclusive geographical indication protection in the EU market. In addition, the whole province has 203 export growing area codes to the US, Japan, Australia, and the Middle East markets.
"International delegations and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be the bridge to support Hai Duong province in strengthening solidarity and friendship with international friends. At the same time, it will open up many new and better opportunities for investment cooperation between the province and localities, international agencies, organizations and businesses." Chairman of Hai Duong Provincial People's Committee Trieu The Hung |
Mr. Ngo Ba Duc, Vice Chairman of the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises of Hai Duong Province, and Head of the Trade Promotion Department, Hai Duong Province Trade Promotion Center, assessed that thanks to the connection between the locality, relevant agencies, especially the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and businesses, Thanh Ha lychee has more opportunities in major markets around the world. According to him, "economic diplomacy in recent years has made positive and important contributions to the development of the locality and businesses, helping to expand relationships with foreign partners, promote two-way trade, penetrate international markets, support production and business development, expand consumer markets...".
With the expectation of being a pioneer in opening up relationships, Mr. Ngo Ba Duc hopes that the agencies of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will continue to research, collect information quickly and accurately, advise localities and businesses to quickly seize opportunities, thereby enjoying the fruits of advanced and modern science and technology in the world.
In order to increase the effectiveness of cooperation between localities, businesses and diplomatic agencies, the Vice President of the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises of Hai Duong province hopes to build closer links between embassies and industry associations, creating a regular channel to provide information on the market, businesses and local legal environment.
To enhance export activities in the coming time, we hope that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ambassadors in other countries will continue to support information on the consumer market of the host country and forecast trends, so that businesses have more official information on the export market; increase activities to connect and exchange Vietnamese businesses and import markets through online channels or trade fairs; support in finding information on import partners, to help export businesses minimize the risk of being scammed or encountering difficulties when trading with unreliable partners. Chairman of the Board of Directors of Ameii Vietnam Joint Stock Company Nguyen Khac Tien |
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