A shift to digital platforms is considered an effective means for businesses to expand export markets as Vietnam integrates more deeply into the global economy, Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Cao Quoc Hung has said.

In his remarks at the 2020 Vietnam Online Import - Export Forum (VOIEF), co-hosted in Hanoi on July 28 by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and the Vietnam E-Commerce Association (VECOM), Hung said the event was held in the context of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) being signed and creating a driving force for Vietnam’s economy and exporters in particular.

The Vietnam E-Business Index 2020 report reveals that a number of Vietnamese companies have embarked on e-commerce to support exports and imports, under both the business-to-business and business-to-consumer models, he said.

The comprehensive plan on national e-commerce development for the 2021-2025 period and the national digital transformation programme to 2025 and vision to 2030 were approved by the Prime Minister in May and June and set digital transformation as an indispensable process in modernising distribution networks, improving business competitiveness, and developing domestic and foreign markets.

Hung said digital transformation will help enterprises join new supply chains and replace old ones disrupted by COVID-19, as well as further diversify export markets and avoid any dependence on certain markets. 

The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) has committed to developing more online level 4 public services, to be a pioneer in administrative reform and e-Government and better serve the public and businesses, he added.

VCCI President Vu Tien Loc highlighted the cooperation between agencies in running digital platforms as being a crucial point in ensuring exports and imports, in regard to self-certification of origin, customs, logistics, and banking services.

On the occasion, the MoIT inaugurated a support platform for exports, at www.ECVN.com, featuring various functions and including a community of exporters and importers to help companies seek online trade opportunities.

Once the EVFTA takes effect, the platform is expected to fully support online trade promotions and link EU and Vietnamese companies together.

In particular, it will help popularise trademarks and develop geographical indications for major Vietnamese exports to the EU such as apparel, footwear, aquatic products, coffee, rice, sugar, wood and wooden furniture, fresh and processed vegetables, mobile phones, machinery, and computers.

Vietnam’s exports hit US$122.8 billion in the first half of this year amid the chaos of the COVID-19 pandemic, up 0.2% year-on-year, while imports were down 2.9% to US$117.3 billion.