On February 12, the 3^rd Southeast Asia Business Forum was organised in Paris, attracting nearly 200 representatives of businesses and economists from France and Southeast Asia.

Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Information and Communications Bui Hoang Phuong made a speech at the forum. Photo: MIC

The event co-chaired by Laurent Saint-Martin, French Minister for Foreign Trade and Overseas French Affairs and Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Information and Communications, aimed to encourage economic cooperation and expand trade relations between the two sides.

Phuong emphasised that Vietnam was home to abundant resources, a high-quality workforce and is one of the fastest growing economies in the world. With a population of over 100 million and a highly skilled manpower in the fields of science and technology, engineering and mathematics, Vietnam is becoming an attractive destination for large technology corporations.

Thanks to a stable policy environment and free trade agreements with many strategic partners, Vietnam has attracted investment expansion from many leading technology corporations such as Nvidia, Amkor, Samsung, Qualcomm, Synopsys, Cadence and Marvell, affirming its position in the global supply chain.

Vietnam-France relations currently have many favourable conditions to develop strongly, especially after the two countries upgraded to comprehensive strategic partnership during the official visit to France by General Secretary To Lam in October 2024. The two sides are expanding cooperation in many fields, especially high technology, digital transformation, AI, renewable energy and transport infrastructure.

The 3rd Southeast Asia Business Forum was organised in Paris. Photo: MIC

“France is one of Vietnam's important investment partners, with many French enterprises having succeeded in the Vietnamese market. However, investment from France in strategic areas such as high technology, digital transformation and AI is still not commensurate with the potential of the two countries,” Phuong said.

In the future, he expects many French corporations and enterprises to increase their investment in Vietnam, take advantage of the market and expand cooperation in many fields.

Laurent Saint-Martin emphasised that Southeast Asia is becoming one of the fastest growing economic regions in the world. Vietnam is one of the most impressively growing economies, playing the role of a bridge between ASEAN and the EU thanks to its participation in 17 free trade agreements (FTAs), especially the EU-Vietnam FTA, and the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA), opening up great opportunities for business and investment cooperation.

At the forum, many French businesses expressed their interest in investing in Vietnam, especially in digital transformation, AI, semiconductor manufacturing, renewable energy and transport infrastructure. France currently has more than 300 businesses investing in Vietnam, including large corporations such as Airbus, Total, EDF, Schneider Electric, Sanofi, and others. However, the potential for cooperation is still large and needs to be tapped into more strongly.

Chu Thi Thanh Ha, chairperson of FPT Software, said that the company has had 20 years of partnership with French firms, including major corporations like Airbus and Canal+.

FPT is currently cooperating with CEA-LETI, France's leading microelectronics research centre to encourage semiconductor research and production, opening up opportunities for deeper cooperation in the high-tech industry.

Photo: MIC

On the sidelines of the forum, the bilateral meeting between Minister Laurent Saint-Martin and Deputy Minister Bui Hoang Phuong highlighted the commitment to expanding bilateral cooperation, especially in AI, semiconductors, digital infrastructure, renewable energy and urban transport.