At the conference promoting investment and trade cooperation between the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap and Japan organised on November 29 (Photo: VNA)

Dong Thap – A conference aimed at promoting investment and trade cooperation between the Mekong Delta province of Dong Thap and Japan was organised on November 29, attracting more than 50 enterprises and investors from both sides.

Addressing the event, Secretary of the provincial Party Committee Le Quoc Phong said that Japan has signed many bilateral and multilateral free trade agreements (FTAs) with Vietnam, creating important legal frameworks for promoting trade, investment and business relations between the two countries. Over the past years, Dong Thap has boosted collaboration with many Japanese localities, organisations and individuals, he said.

As the province has always ranked in the top five in the country in terms of the provincial competitiveness index for the past 15 consecutive years, Dong Thap is confident that it is an ideal investment environment for Japanese businesses, he noted

Japanese Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City Masuo Ono said that once Dong Thap's road and waterway transportation system is complete, it will open up opportunities for investment and trade collaboration between the province’s enterprises and Japanese companies in such fields as agricultural processing, logistics, and tourism.

At the conference, participants were briefed about industrial parks, border gate economic zones, industrial clusters, fields and projects that are calling for investment.

Investment and trade connection activities between Dong Thap businesses and Japanese businesses were also organised within the framework of the event, along with the introduction of local culture, tourism, and cuisine as well as products with demand for export to Japan.

The total trade turnover between Dong Thap and Japan reached 18.17 million USD in 2022 and topped 20.5 million USD in the first eight months of this year. Dong Thap exported seafood, apparel, footwear, shrimp crackers and products made from rice to Japan while importing textile accessories and animal feed.