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| Overview of the Vietnam-Algeria Business Forum on October 17 in Hanoi. (Photo: Van Chi) |
The forum was co-chaired by Minister of Construction Nguyen Thanh Nghi and Minister of Industry and Pharmaceutical Production, Co-Chair of the Vietnam-Algeria Intergovernmental Committee Ali Aoun.
In his welcoming speech at the Forum, Minister Le Thanh Nghi affirmed that over the past time, the friendship, solidarity and multifaceted cooperation between Vietnam and Algeria have continuously developed in all fields from politics, diplomacy to economics, trade, investment, culture, science and technology and achieved many encouraging results. Trade and investment cooperation plays an important role, contributing to promoting comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and Algeria.
Regarding bilateral cooperation, Algeria is an important partner of Vietnam in the African market and is the 4th largest export market of Vietnam in Africa. According to Vietnam customs data, in 2018, two-way trade turnover reached 195.6 million USD.
However, in recent years, due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and the global economic downturn, trade turnover has decreased, reaching only 144.2 million USD in 2022, of which Vietnam exported 141 million USD and imported 3.2 million USD from Algeria.
Vietnam hopes Algeria will increase its exports to the Vietnamese market to narrow the trade balance gap between the two countries. In the first 9 months of 2023, Vietnam's export turnover to Algeria reached more than 170 million USD, an increase of more than 60% over the same period last year.
From this reality, Vietnam hopes that Algeria will increase its exports to the Vietnamese market to narrow the trade balance gap between the two countries. Minister Nguyen Thanh Nghi also said that the Algerian delegation visiting Vietnam this time has the participation of many large enterprises in the fields of agriculture, food, seafood, energy, industry, construction, trade, and health.
The Minister hopes that the Vietnam-Algeria Business Forum will be a practical opportunity, creating conditions for Vietnamese and Algerian businesses to meet, exchange information, and better understand the preferential trade policies and foreign investment attraction mechanisms of the two countries.
Thereby, grasping the priority areas and list of potential projects between the two countries, as a basis for research, trade and investment promotion, contributing to promoting Vietnam-Algeria trade and investment cooperation to reach a new milestone.
Representing Algeria, Minister of Industry and Pharmaceutical Production Ali Aoun shared that with 8 participating businesses being leading enterprises in the fields of agriculture, food, industry, steel, construction materials, pharmaceuticals, etc., the Forum will create conditions for businesses from both sides to meet, exchange information, share potential, and cooperate in trade and investment.
According to Minister Ali Aoun, the relationship between the two countries has developed very strongly, especially in the context of an increasingly complex world economy. The two countries need to consider this an opportunity to strengthen cooperation and mobilize resources to overcome difficulties.
Minister Ali Aoun emphasized that this business forum will be an opportunity for the two sides to discuss opportunities and measures to encourage investment and trade that the two countries offer to each other as well as to businesses, and to propose new forms of cooperation.
According to Minister Ali Aoun, Algeria is currently implementing a program to encourage the development of the national economy through participation in the global value chain. Along with that, it is promoting cooperation in the industrial sector, technology transfer and has many policies to encourage the development of industry and mining.
In addition, Algeria is also interested in areas such as agricultural processing, renewable energy, housing, basic infrastructure, tourism, etc. and has many policies to support businesses in this field to develop and meet the needs of the people.
Algeria has no investment projects in Vietnam, while Vietnam has only one mining investment project in Algeria with a large total capital of up to 1 billion USD. Vietnam's advantage in attracting investment (including investment from Algeria) is lower production costs and abundant, cheap labor.
Delegates attending the Forum expect that in the coming time, this will be an advantage to attract investment capital from foreign investors, including Algerian enterprises, to Vietnam.
Within the framework of the Forum, Vietnamese and Algerian enterprises had a B2B exchange and contact session. Many Algerian enterprises expressed special interest in the Vietnamese market and wished to promote trade between the two sides in the coming time.
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