Domestic businesses need to focus on applying cutting-edge technologies to improve their product quality and cut down prices so that made-in-Vietnam products can truly become the first choice of Vietnamese consumers.

So said participants at a workshop held by the Vietnam Private Business Association (VPBA) in Hanoi on December 27.

Duong Duy Hung, Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT)’s Domestic Market Department, pointed out to numerous weaknesses of domestic production such as the monotony of product design and diversity, uncompetitive prices, businesses’ neglect of goods promotion and consumer services, the lax connection between manufacturers and sellers, and the slack market watch.

Raising competitiveness must be conducted regularly, continuously and on the long-term base, said VPBA Vice Chairman Ngo Van Diem, adding that Vietnam needs to improve its national competitiveness, build an appropriate development plan, and create a fair competition environment and a favourable business climate.

He suggested the country help enterprises increase their competitiveness while companies also need to partner with one another, abolish the mindset of hunting for short-term profits, and invest more in personnel training.

According to a recent survey on outcomes of the five-year implementation of the campaign “Vietnamese people prioritise the use of Vietnamese goods”, 92 percent of questioned consumers were interested in the drive, 57 percent of them recognised the campaign’s communication efforts, and 63 percent prioritised using domestic products. This survey was carried out by the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Communication and Education.

The amount of textile and garment materials imported from China dropped dramatically to 37 percent, compared to 75-80 percent in the previous years, said a report compiled by the MOIT and the Ministry of Planning and Investment in September.

There is also an increasing trend, especially in cities, that local consumers buy domestically made apparel although smuggled products are dwarfing local ones.

While some foreign brands are dominating the market of formula milk, most of other products such as yogurt and condensed and fresh milk on sale are made by Vietnamese companies like Vinamilk and TH True Milk, the report shows.-VNA