Dozens of French groups and major companies operating in different fields joined an online conference on September 28 that sought ways to promote French investments in Vietnam after the COVID-19.

Vietnam has become a candidate destination for value chain transformation in Asia.
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The conference was co-organised by the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the French Embassy in Vietnam, and MEDEF International - a non-profit private-funded organisation created in 1989 by MEDEF, the French Business Confederation.

François Corbin, President of the Vietnam-France Business Council and Vice President of MEDEF International, said the large number of businesses involved in the conference reflects the high level of interest in Vietnam.

He highlighted Vietnam’s positive growth amid the pandemic, saying the country has become a candidate destination for value chain transformation in Asia.

Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Tran Quoc Phuong said the Vietnam-France relationship has developed fruitfully since the two countries set up a strategic partnership in 2013.

Regarding the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) and the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA), he said they will open up more opportunities for Vietnamese and French investors to access the markets of each other.

Vietnam has paid attention to quality, efficiency, technology, and environmental protection during its investment attraction efforts, he stressed.

According to Do Nhat Hoang, head of the Foreign Investment Agency, the Vietnamese Government has adjusted the Law on Enterprises and the Law on Investment in an effort to streamline procedures and create an open corridor for foreign investors in the country.

In anticipation of waves of foreign investment, the country has prepared land and human resources while setting up a working group in charge of removing obstacles to investment and attracting quality and large-scale investment projects.

Participating French firms at the conference raised questions regarding Vietnam’s priority projects and measures to address difficulties facing existing projects.

The two sides agreed to further exchange information and facilitate French investments in areas of shared concern, especially technology-intensive and high-tech sectors.