Speaking at the forum, Bui Nguyen Anh Tuan, Deputy Director of the Department of Domestic Market Management and Development, emphasised that in the context of a volatile global economy and strong shifts in the digital age, the domestic market has been playing an important pillar role, a solid launching pad for the sustainable development of the Vietnamese economy.

“The orientation of domestic trade development policy in the new development era is not a task of the Department of Domestic Market Management and Development or the Ministry of Industry and Trade alone, but a common journey, requiring the cooperation and consensus from the central to local levels, from state management agencies to the business community, industry associations and all people”, Tuan emphasised.

Sharing at the forum, Bui The Hiep, Deputy Director of the Ha Noi Department of Industry and Trade, said that in order to effectively and creatively implement the assigned tasks on trade development programs and stimulate consumption in Ha Noi city.

In addition, the Department of Industry and Trade has effectively implemented solutions to link production with the distribution of goods, strengthen linkages in the value chain of goods associated with the good implementation of regulations on food quality and safety; continue to implement activities to connect supply and demand of goods to promote the consumption of domestically produced goods in traditional and modern distribution channels.

Representing businesses, Tran Thi Phuong Lan, Chairwoman of the Viet Nam Retailers’ Association, also said that in recent years, the retail system of Ha Noi has developed strongly with a commercial infrastructure system, including: 482 markets, 130 shopping centers, 141 supermarkets, 2,000 convenience stores, 1,872 safe fruit stores, 118 OCOP product introduction and sales points,... fully serving the shopping and consumption needs of essential products and specialties of the people, without any shortage of goods in any case. At the same time, Ha Noi city has prioritised allocating resources and removing difficulties for the development of a widespread commercial infrastructure network in the capital.

However, Lan said that in addition to the advantages, businesses are also facing many challenges that require the Vietnamese retail market to innovate further, and businesses also need to comprehensively transform digitally to meet market demand and supply chain needs.

She also recommended the need to perfect policies, improve the investment and business environment, and administrative procedures to enhance the effectiveness of law enforcement on domestic market development; have specific policies for businesses to develop commercial infrastructure in remote, mountainous areas, etc. At the same time, there should be policies to attract FDI investment to develop a modern retail distribution system, especially information technology infrastructure for e-commerce activities; encourage investment in developing logistics services, transportation and preservation, payment services, etc.