Vietnamese Ambassador to South Africa Vu Van Dung (Photo: VNA)Dung had a meeting withleaders of South Africa’s Durban Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) onJanuary 30 to discuss issues related to cooperation between Vietnam and SouthAfrica as well as the embassy and the DCCI.
The Vietnamese diplomatheld that Vietnam and South Africa - a large economy of Africa and the world –still hold great potential for stronger trade cooperation although two-waytrade reached only 1.2 billion USD in 2016.
Vietnam will host theAPEC Year 2017 with about 200 activities along with the APEC High-level Week atthe end of the year, which is a good chance for enterprises from Durban andSouth Africa in general to tighten connections with their partners inAsia-Pacific region, he said.
Dao Manh Duc, head ofthe Vietnamese Embassy’s office for trade affairs, said that althoughVietnamese products are suitable to the South African market, they have yetbeen popular among South African consumers and businesses due to a lack ofinformation as well as business exchange channels.
Meanwhile, SouthAfrica’s strong products such as beef, fruits, wine and mineral products haveyet to successfully enter the Vietnamese market, said Duc.
He also asked the DCCIto enhance the sharing of information and partnership opportunities throughtrade promotion events hosted by the DCCI and increase meetings between tradedelegations of both sides.
Alta Keyter, DCCIDirector for Marketing and Communications, said that in the future, the DCCIwill promptly update information about Vietnam’s goods, tourism and trade fairsand exhibitions in its news bulletins, while actively exchange information withthe Vietnamese Embassy to provide South African businesses with chances tostudy the market, products and tourism of Vietnam.
Durban is the largestport city in South Africa as well as a major container port of the SouthHemisphere. It is an economic hub of South Africa with diverse sectorsincluding production, tourism, transportation, finance and import-exportactivities. With long beaches, warm weather and unique culture, the locality isalso an attractive tourist destination.
The DCCI wasestablished in 1856, grouping over 2,800 firms. It is one of the largest andmost prestigious commerce and industry chambers of South Africa.-VNA
VNA
