Nguyen Huu Nam, deputy director of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, at the event (Photo: VNA) HCM City (VNS/VNA) - Foreign direct investment in Vietnam'sagriculture sector remains limited despite the industry's enormous potential.
Wide-ranging measures that would attract moreinvestment and help modernise the sector are needed, delegatessaid at a seminar held in HCM City on December 3.
NguyenThi Hong Thanh from the Information Centre for Agricultureand Rural Development under the Institute or Policy for Agriculture and RuralDevelopment, said: “As of December last year, FDI in the agriculturalsector remained modest, accounting for just 1.61 percent of the total number ofFDI projects and 0.97 percent of total FDI capital into Vietnam.”
Taiwan, the Virgin Islands, Singapore and Thailand areamong the largest foreign investors in the field, she said, adding that foreigninvestors have mainly invested in cultivation, animal husbandry, forestry,aquaculture, and agricultural production and services.
Foreign investment in the sector has broughttechnology transfer and new production models that have improved addedvalue and competitiveness of Vietnamese products. It has also helped tocreate more jobs and improve infrastructure in rural areas, and enabled thesector to directly connect to global value chains.
But foreign investors have mainly invested in some localitiesand sub-sectors mostly because of difficulties in accessing land todevelop a stable source of materials and limited logisticsservices and infrastructure, she said.
Vu Xuan Dang, deputy director of the Southern InvestmentPromotion Agency, said there is nota large land fund for agricultural production in many localities, and somelocalities with large land funds givepriority to industrial parks.
NguyenHuu Nam, deputy director of the VietnamChamber of Commerce and Industry – HCM City branch, said that withthe small scale of agricultural land, it will be difficult to develop concentrated productionareas and apply advanced technology and machines. As aresult, post-harvest losses are high, which adversely affects foreigninvestment.
NguyenAnh Phong, director of the Information Centre for Agriculture and RuralDevelopment, said that foreign investors in agriculture have complainedabout access to information related to land-use planning and thequality of public services.
Le Minh Thuy Trang from Eurocham agreed,saying that administrative procedures are thetop concern of foreign investors.
The Government has policiesto attract foreign investors, including corporate tax and land rentalincentives, but the policies should clearly state the incentive rates, shesaid.
Delegates at the seminar also discussed measures tolure more foreign investors to the sector in the coming time.
Phong said the country should prioritise foreigninvestment in the sectors and products that have comparative advantages, highadded-value, and potential for market expansion. Those using advancedand environmentally-friendly technology should also be a priority.
Improving the investment environment and reformingpolicies related to land and taxes are also needed, as wellas upgrading infrastructure and training human resources in rural areas,he added.
Dang said the country needsto “create more favorable conditions for foreign investors, includingpolicies to encourage the development of concentrated animal husbandryareas and material zones, large-scale fields, and high-tech agriculturalzones.”
In addition, the Government shouldincrease investment in infrastructure development in the northernmountainous region, the Central Highlands, and the Mekong River Delta region,which all have localities with high potential for agriculturaldevelopment.
Improving the quality of local human resources to meetagricultural development in the 4.0 industry era is also a must, he added./.
