The opportunities and challenges from the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) were the focus of a recent conference held in Ho Chi Minh City.

The conference is a part of series of activities of the 2014 CLMV Action Plan with the aim of strengthening the cooperation among Cambodia , Laos , Myanmar and Vietnam.

At the event, the National Committee for International Economic Cooperation Chief Executive Officer An The Dung stressed the need for enterprises to understand the impacts of RCEP on ASEAN’s economy in general and the CLMV group in particular.

Participants at the conference also highlighted opportunities expected to emerge from the combination of the RCEP and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), which they said will create a foundation for a free trade agreement for the entire Asian-Pacific region.

Meanwhile, an expert from the European Trade Policy and Investment Support Project (EU-MUTRAP) called on the four countries to enhance their competitiveness in order to fully take advantage of the RCEP, noting that they will have to compete against other developed member countries.-VNA