Malaysian Minister Mohamed Azmin Ali (front left) touring Yen So Park

In mid-March, Malaysian Minister of International Trade and Industry Mohamed Azmin Ali visited Gamuda City, developed by Gamuda Land – one of the largest Malaysian investors in Vietnam.

Dennis Ng Teck Yow, general director of Gamuda Land Vietnam, said that this was the second time the minister had visited Yen So Park, and was further impressed after a 4km cycle around the lake. Yen So Park used to be one of the more polluted places in Hanoi with very few visitors. However, the park has since been transformed into a cultural destination and high-quality urban area for the capital city.

“Gamuda is a successful example of Malaysian businesses in Vietnam. Since the joint venture entered the country, Gamuda has invested about $500 million over the past decade, contributing to the construction of Vietnam and improving social infrastructure as well as supporting the development of the community,” Minister Ali said.

There is enormous potential for Malaysia and Vietnam to further strengthen bilateral ties on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Malaysia-Vietnam diplomatic relations in 2023; therefore, the Malaysian minister set high expectations.

As of late 2021, Vietnam remained Malaysia’s 11th largest trading partner, while Malaysia is Vietnam’s ninth-largest trading partner, with the bilateral trade turnover of $16.71 billion.

Minister Ali believed that these figures are still below the potential of both countries. He said, “In a previous meeting with Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien, we expressed our intention to increase our bilateral trade turnover to $18 billion by 2025. In the recent meeting on March 21, prime ministers Pham Minh Chinh and Ismail Sabri Yaakob have also agreed to further improve this ambitious targets.”

Among them, the Halal market holds tremendous opportunities for the two countries. With extensive experience of Halal products, Malaysian companies are willing to cooperate with Vietnamese partners to achieve Halal certificates to expand to the potential market of Islamic countries.

Two sides are also discussing partnerships in the energy sector. Accordingly, Malaysia can supply a stable source of gas to Vietnam. “Petronas, Malaysia’s largest petroleum group, can supply 30,000 barrels of oil to Vietnam. In the long term, the two sides will have a more thorough agreement between Petronas and the competent company in Vietnam on this issue,” the minister added.

Although the investment flow from Vietnam to Malaysia has yet to live up to expectations, Minister Ali said that some industries such as IT and automation can lead to financing activities from Vietnam to Malaysia.

During the visit, FPT Corporation agreed to develop an IT centre at the Malaysian IT Development Centre in Malaysia. FPT promises to train thousands of employees in Kuala Lumpur and Sabah and, currently, there are many clients in Malaysia who want to cooperate with the Vietnamese IT group.

“I have had the opportunity to meet with 23 Vietnamese and Malaysian companies in Vietnam from various fields including aviation, energy, and financial services,” Minister Ali explained. “We had very productive meetings, and we believe that bilateral trade and investment ties between the two countries will be very exciting in the near future.”

Gamuda Land placing trust in Vietnamese progress Vietnam is now becoming a magnet for property development. Dennis Ng Teck Yow, general director of Gamuda Land Vietnam, talked with VIR’s Lam Nhi about how important the market is to the company and its upcoming plans. Dennis Ng Teck Yow, general director of Gamuda Land Vietnam How do you rate the potential of Vietnam’s real estate market for foreign developers? Vietnam is a high potential market for real estate development, for new investors as well as experienced ones that have some understanding of the market, like Gamuda. Gamuda is currently investing in real estate in Singapore, Australia, and many other markets. However, Vietnam remains a top priority market for us. What are the key factors supporting Gamuda’s investments in Vietnam? The factors include political stability, high economic growth, and rapid urbanisation, as well as Vietnam’s comprehensive infrastructure development strategy in recent years. We find that Vietnam now shares a lot of similarities with the beginning of Malaysia’s explosive growth. Thus, it will open up a lot of opportunities. You can see the real estate market bounce back almost immediately after the economy reopens. The speed of recovery demonstrates the vast potential of the market. What is your expectation for the local authorities to solve the pending issues of Malaysian businesses after the recent visit of the new Malaysian prime minister to Vietnam? In bilateral meetings at the prime ministerial level, I know that the two sides have made timely and effective exchanges related to the operation of Gamuda Land, as well as other Malaysian enterprises in Vietnam. I am very confident that this high-level visit will pave the way for more Malaysian businesses to invest in Vietnam. Seeing Gamuda’s success in Vietnam, I believe that many other real estate developers in Malaysia are very interested in the Vietnamese market. Gamuda Land intends to expand its land bank and develop more projects. Can you share the targeted areas for the company? We are developing a new project in the southern province of Binh Duong. At the same time, we are also looking for opportunities in the surrounding localities of Ho Chi Minh City, namely Long An and Dong Nai provinces. In the north, we are interested in Hung Yen province.