Tran Tien Dung, Vice President of the Vietnam Logistics Service Enterprises Association (VLA) speaks at the forum.

Close cooperation for development

According to VLA Vice President Tran Tien Dung, achievements of cooperation between the General Department of Vietnam Customs have been shown in figures. The change in awareness and behavior, and from management subjects into cooperation partners, has helped share responsibility in managing import and export goods and promoting national economic development.

Vietnam Vietnam has a high level of economic openness, with import-export turnover of over US$700 billion and its strategic geographical location and a growing economy, the construction and development of a modern and effective logistics system is one of key factors to enhance the competitiveness of goods and services.

According to VLA, the Customs not only plays a key role in managing and supervising import-export activities, but is also an important bridge to help logistics enterprises overcome trade barriers, promoting the smooth and effective circulation of goods.

The development of cooperation between VLA and the Customs over the past time has brought many practical benefits not only to enterprises but also created favorable conditions for Vietnamese goods to quickly access the international market. Furthermore, the close coordination also contributes to building a transparent and fair business environment, creating trust for investors and international partners, thereby promoting sustainable economic development.

“The container port throughput, from more than 10 million TEUs in 2014, is expected to increase to 21-22 million TEUs by 2024, which is an impressive growth figure. The achievement results from great efforts between the General Department of Vietnam Customs and the business community in the Customs-Business Partnership development program.

Dung also forecasts that market demand will grow faster in the near future, thanks to the determination of the Party and Government in developing seaport infrastructure and industrial clusters and zones to attract foreign investment. Moreover, Vietnam has a great advantage to become an international logistics center. However, the big challenge is how to take full advantage of those opportunities.

Over the past 10 years, port throughput, import-export turnover and FDI attraction have nearly doubled, some indicators even more than double. It is expected that by 2030, many criteria may continue to double, requiring management agencies, especially the General Department of Vietnam Customs, to make efforts to digitally transform and apply smart technology to manage the huge workload.

“The results of implementing the customs-business partnership have created a strong foundation of trust, improving and promoting the relationship between state management agency and the business community. Thanks to solutions provided by the Customs along with the efforts of businesses, development goals will be achieved higher” Dung said.

Continue to innovate and improve logistics performance

However, the VLA representative pointed out that the increasing competitive pressure requires industries and levels, including the VLA, should find solutions to improve services and reduce logistics costs. Vietnam needs to promote multimodal transport, combining inland waterway and road transport to reduce costs for businesses. Currently, many businesses in the Central and Northern regions still depend on road transport, leading to high transportation costs and many difficulties.

The VLA has a specific plan to work with many businesses, aiming to develop the inland waterway and railway transport system more strongly, supplement low-cost and low-emission transport methods, contributing to reducing logistics costs for the business community.

In the near future, the VLA representative recommended that the Customs and businesses should strengthen cooperation in establishing focal points to receive and resolve problems of businesses and associations, and update new customs procedures to quickly provide information to the import-export business community through VLA. At the same time, continue to coordinate to introduce legal regulations on customs related to logistics service business activities and contribute opinions to draft legal documents.

In addition, the General Department of Vietnam Customs and VLA should promoted cooperation to exchange and study the possibilities of optimizing and integrating customs management software with common systems and platforms in logistics, e-commerce, and electronic bill of lading management. Support and expedite digital transformation of enterprises and related parties to ensure synchronization with the digital transformation process of the Customs industry.

The VLA representative said that strengthening cooperation and application of information technology, along with improving service capacity, will help improve trust and partnership between the General Department of Vietnam Customs and the business community, contributing to promoting the sustainable development of the logistics industry and the Vietnamese economy.