Difficulties facing foreign businesses investing in agriculture in Vietnam, especially those concerning policies on land, infrastructure, tax and administrative procedures, were pointed out at a conference in Hanoi on July 13.

Held by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the event was organised to gather opinions to the drafting of a decree on encouraging foreign investment into the country’s agricultural sector.
A representative from Nestle Vietnam highlighted questions from foreign investors on how to invest in agriculture in Vietnam, saying foreign companies hesitate to funnel capital into the field due to difficulties caused by Vietnam’s Land Law.

The Decree should clarify high-tech agriculture investment and tax policies, participants stressed.

According to representatives from Syngenta Vietnam , the firm has invested in a centre for researching rice varieties in the northern province of Nam Dinh and another for researching plant protection chemical solutions in the Mekong Delta province of Tien Giang, but it is not permitted to rent land from local farmers to serve the company’s experiments.

They asked for appropriate measures and policies to facilitate foreign agriculture investment in Vietnam.

Tran Thi Thanh Tam from the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry said it is necessary to encourage businesses to invest in hi-tech sectors, post-harvest processing and developing infrastructure facilities for agricultural production.

At the conference, participants from the Japan International Cooperation Agency ( JICA ) revealed Japan’s hesitation to import farm products from Vietnam, saying further attention is needed to ensure the safety of farm products.-VNA