Japanese and Vietnamese officials as well asrepresentatives of enterprises from Ehime were meeting in the city toseek closer business ties.
It is expected that the MoU will boost investment of enterprises from Ehime Prefecture to HCM City in upcoming years.
Earlierthis year, the governor of Ehime Prefecture visited Vietnam to discussthe possibility of future business between the two countries.
HCMCity has set up several industrial zones to attract Japanese investors,especially small- and medium-sized enterprises, and those operating inthe support industry.
Joko Toshifumi, the vice governor ofEhime Prefecture, said several Japanese enterprises in the high-techmanufacturing industry had opened factories in HCM City and theprovinces of Tay Ninh and Long An.
Under the MoU, theassociation will act as a bridge to introduce the city's industrialparks and export processing zones to Ehime's enterprises, while HEPZAwill provide consulting services on legal and investment procedures tocompanies from Ehime Prefecture.
HEPZA will also arrangefor a business delegation from Ehime to visit industrial parks andexport processing zones in HCM City.
Murata Yuuji, deputyhead of Japan's Ehime Prefecture's Association of Small-and-Medium-sizedEnterprises, expects the visit to intensify economic cooperationbetween the city and Japan.
The central association has 414 member associations with a total of 28,000 small-and medium-sized enterprises as members.
VuVan Hoa, head of the city's Export Processing Zone Authority'smanagement board, said the city's 16 industrial parks and exportprocessing zones had attracted 1,314 projects with total registeredcapital of nearly 9 billion USD, of which 5 billion USD was foreigninvestment.
Japan is currently the biggest investor in thecity's industrial parks and export processing zones, with $1.36 billioninvested in 116 projects.
Japanese enterprises have invested in mechanics, electronics, pharmaceuticals, chemicals and food industries.
HCMCity seeks to attract small- and medium-sized enterprises from Japan,especially those in the support industry that produce components for theelectronics and automobile industries.
Hoa said the cityhad prepared infrastructure to receive support-industry enterprises inBinh Chanh District's Le Minh Xuan 3 Industrial Park and Hiep PhuocIndustrial Park in Nha Be District. The two industrial parks are builton 304ha of land.
He said the 13-ha Vie-Pan Techno Parkwould open in December to receive Japanese enterprises from Ehime nowoperating in Hiep Phuoc Industrial Park.-VNA