Dr. Bader Abdulla answering questions from the audience. Photo: Quynh Trang

The unveiling of the brand-new Vietnam hub took place on the morning of February 28 in Hanoi in the presence of Dr. Bader Abdullah Al Matrooshi, the United Arab Emirates' Ambassador, Tran Hong Hai, deputy director general of Vietnam's Foreign Trade Agency, the WLP delegation, and Vietnamese representatives. The event coincides with Vietnam and the UAE celebrating 30 years of diplomatic relations.

According to Hai, the trade sector and the national logistics network have long prioritised facilitating trade and enhancing national competitiveness. With the announcement of the WLP programme's launch in Vietnam, he anticipates that the logistics sector will produce significant results, and that the WLP's network will improve Vietnam's logistics connection with the rest of the world.

The UAE is Vietnam's largest trade partner in the Middle East, with approximately $8 billion in bilateral trade last year, according to Alsuwaidi. Thanks to additional projects, such as the WLP, he said that we should see larger trade quantities by improving financial and trade perks to the signing partners, and thus, he anticipates more partners to join.

Ambassador Almatrooshi commended the Ministry of Industry and Trade and other Vietnamese government institutions for their vital role and assistance, and emphasised that business connections between the UAE and Vietnam would continue to expand.

Alsuwaidi noted that the WLP is a multilateral trading network that seeks to facilitate frictionless international commerce. The advantages are customised to assist merchants to save money and time and gain access to new market possibilities.

"We are deliberately selecting logistics and supply chain partners to overcome trade restrictions and increase the variety of import and export items at all hubs," added the Ambassador.

Vietnam Airlines, T&Y Superport Vin Phuc JSC, Railway Transport and Trade JSC, Vietnam Railway, Vietnam Shippers Council, and the Vietnam Coffee and Cocoa Association are among the organisations and firms that have registered a cooperation agreement to enact the initiative.

As a rising manufacturing centre with a positioning strategy for regional transshipment, the nation will function as a crucial node in the WLP network. The WLP plan is centred on duplicating the lessons that Dubai has learned over the last two decades about the development of an effective worldwide network of hubs.

The WLP collaborates with allies in 29 global hubs and provides members with specific advantages to decrease costs, save time, eliminate trade obstacles, open multimodal commerce, streamline the whole trade experience for merchants, and gain access to international markets.