On October 27, in Malaysia, on the sidelines of the 47th ASEAN Summit and related Summits, Minister Nguyen Hong Dien had a working session with the Business Council of Canada led by Mr. Goldy Hyder - Chairman and CEO.
During the meeting, Minister Nguyen Hong Dien said that Vietnam and Canada are two economies with complementary exports, mutually supportive. With both countries being members of the CPTPP Agreement, Vietnam and Canada have the opportunity to expand export markets. In addition, the framework of cooperation The Joint Economic Committee of the bilateral Joint Stock Commission is also removing obstacles and creating favorable conditions for economic and trade cooperation between enterprises of the two countries.
With the established cooperation frameworks and the instructions of the two countries' senior leaders, economic and trade cooperation has always grown positively. Vietnam becomes Canada's No. 1 partner in ASEAN; Canada becomes Vietnam's 3rd trade partner in the Americas. In 2024, trade exchanges between the two countries will reach 7.23 billion USD, up 15.8%.
Reiterating the content of the exchange between Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney held on October 26 on the sidelines of the 47th ASEAN Summit, Minister Nguyen Hong Dien said that the two leaders had agreed that in the next 3 years, trade between the two countries will increase by one and a half times, about 10 billion USD or more.
However, that result is still very small compared to the potential and advantages between the two countries. The proportion of trade exchanges between the two countries in total imports between the two sides is still very low. Vietnamese goods entering Canada account for only 2% of the total amount of goods imported by Canada from the world; Canada's investment in Vietnam is also very modest, ranking 14th/139 countries/ territories investing in Vietnam.
The two countries businesses still have great potential to exploit; the two countries need to connect in production, supply chains and invest in technology and brands to promote trade growth - Minister Nguyen Hong Dien suggested.
Thanking Minister Nguyen Hong Dien for his sharing, Mr. Goldy Hyder - Chairman and CEO of the Canada Business Council - said that the relationship between the two countries has been further strengthened thanks to joint participation in the CPTPP. According to Mr. Goldy Hyder, the current level of trade cooperation is only the beginning, not the end.
We hope that Canada can rise to a higher position in the list of investors in Vietnam, while ensuring that the two sides coordinate closely in their priorities such as energy security, food security, technology, human resources and skilled workforce, emphasized the Chairman and CEO of the Business Council of Canada (BCC).
Mr. Goldy Hyder expressed his wish to have more time to study more deeply how to support digital transformation in education, as well as improve the skills of the workforce to better grasp cooperation opportunities. At the same time, both countries are making efforts to ensure that the labor market is well equipped to meet the digital transformation process and the application of artificial intelligence.
We are building learning platforms used by universities and businesses. We have a large presence in Singapore, where most universities are using our technology to support students, said Mr. Goldy Hyder.
Also related to AI training and digital transformation applications, Minister Nguyen Hong Dien said that the Ministry of Industry and Trade currently has 9 universities and 21 colleges, including a number of universities that have trained in AI and semiconductors. By 2030, Vietnam needs to train 50,000 semiconductor industrial engineers. The Minister hopes that Canadian businesses will pay attention to and seek opportunities for cooperation with the system of schools under the Ministry of Industry and Trade in this field.
The Minister said that the Vietnamese Government is committed to creating an open, transparent and stable investment environment, while proactively diversifying markets and strategic partners. The Minister affirmed that Vietnam will create all favorable conditions for Canadian enterprises to invest and do business in Vietnam.
