Organsed by the Vietnamese Embassy in South Africa, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) of Vietnam and the Johannesburg Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI), the event offered a chance for the two sides’ firms to study issues related to business and investment, such as tax and incentive policies, payment procedures and business risks. 

Speaking at the event, Vietnamese Ambassador Vu Van Dung stressed this is part of diplomatic activities to promote economic and trade links between the two countries, towards lifting two-way trade to 1.5 billion USD by 2020. 

Vice President of the JCCI Jacki Luthuli hoped that trade promotion activities would help turn potential into practical results, bringing economic benefits to the two nations’ business communities and contributing to tightening bilateral diplomatic ties. 

At the seminar, participants introduced their countries’ products of strength such as coffee, rice, textiles and construction materials of Vietnam, and mining and agricultural products and meat of South Africa. 

Previously, on June 25, the MoIT’s trade promotion delegation and the Vietnamese Embassy had working sessions with officials from the ministries of mining, industry and trade,  foreign affairs and health of South Africa, during which the two sides updated each other on information related to sectors of common concern and discussed plans to strengthen trade bonds. 

Vietnam sent eight enterprises to attend SAITEX 2018 - the largest trade fair in Africa, which features nearly 400 enterprises from 36 countries, and hopes to draw thousands of visitors. 

According to the MoIT, South Africa is the leading trade partner of Vietnam in Africa. Over the last decade, two-way trade between Vietnam and South Africa increased more than five times to 920 million USD in 2013 from only 192 million USD in 2007.  The figure hit about 1.2 billion USD in 2017.