It was the assertion of Mr Stephan Schwarz, Vice President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Berlin at the “Berlin – Ho Chi Minh City Infrastructure Conference: Building Bridges for People and Businesses” held recently in Ho Chi Minh City on the occasion of the official visit of Mayor of Berlin Klaus Wowereit to Vietnam, from 27th to 31st October, 2013.
Delivering speech at the opening session, Mayor Klaus Wowereit said that during the two decades since reunification, Berlin has transformed itself into a city of dynamic economic growth and cultural development. With a network of elite universities and colleges and the establishment of numerous high-tech companies and new enterprises, the capital of Germany is the land of most creativity and innovation in Europe. Berlin has a lot of experience thanks to its professional position as a medical center, a typical city of traffic technology and urban transport in the 21st century, and a place of the development of information technology, telecommunications, construction and architecture.
In November 2014, for the first time, Vietnam will be the host country of the Asia – Pacific Conference (APK) which is expected to take place in Ho Chi Minh City with the participation of more than 800 enterprises. In the framework of the Conference, Berlin will hold the Week of Asia – Pacific of Berlin, of which Vietnam is an important partner. Mr Klaus Wowereit stressed: “Based on this background, the City Hall, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Berlin and universities seek to build and increase cooperation with Vietnamese partners. Therefore, I’m glad to do future-oriented talks in the developed and creative capital of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City.”
According to statistics of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Berlin, there are currently 1,734 Vietnamese companies in Berlin, accounting for 4.5 percent of foreign companies and being the fifth largest business community of the city. Of the 16 major sectors of Vietnamese enterprises, the retail sector is the most important one (accounting for nearly 50 percent), following are hotel industry (31.2 percent) and other services (16.1 percent). In particular, cooperation in infrastructure and health care projects has brought many benefits to both parties and there is still much potential to exploit. Based on this solid foundation, the economic ties between Berlin and Vietnam have many opportunities to be promoted, bringing significant economic benefits for the business community of both parties. Mr Stephan Schwarz said: “The purpose of this visit to Vietnam is to bring leaders of Berlin and Vietnam closer together. I am very proud of the diversity and craftsmanship of Berlin’s businesses, especially in the field of traffic and transportation, waste water treatment, energy, architecture and medicine. Particularly, cooperation in infrastructure and health care projects has brought many benefits to both sides and there are still many potentials need exploiting. Vietnamese business community is also one of the most dynamic ones in Berlin. Comparing high competitiveness of our businesses with the needs of product and service in Vietnam, I am convinced that now both parties can fully complement each other well.”
Vietnam and Germany have long traditional partnerships and officially became strategic partners in 2011. Currently, Germany is an important partner in the fields of foreign trade, investment and ODA provision for Vietnam.
In the field of trade, Germany is still the most important trade partner of Vietnam in the EU. Many incentive grants programmes for Vietnam are deployed effectively. Bilateral trade relations will be enhanced as the demand for infrastructure and health care of Vietnam is concerned by experienced enterprises of Berlin.
Particularly in the field of investment, many of Germany’s leading corporations such as Siemens, Metro, Mercedes – Benz, Deutsche Bank, Allianz, etc. open facilities and make long-term commitment to invest in Vietnam. However, compared to abundant cooperation potential between the two countries, the German investment in Vietnam still remains very modest. As of September 2013, Germany had 209 direct investment projects in Vietnam with a total registered capital of US$1.14 billion, ranking 22nd out of countries and territories investing in Vietnam.
Currently, German businesses not only make investment in the Ho Chi Minh City but also support the development of the financial and baking sector, technology transfer, etc. Some cooperation activities in recent years have been contributing to the development of bilateral relations between the two sides.
Chau Nguyen
Đăng ký: VietNam News