At Thai Nguyen Textile Garment Co., Ltd - Illustrative image (Photo: VNA) New Delhi (VNA) – The Vietnamese Embassy in India, in coordination with chambers of commerce and industry in West Bengal, has organised conferences to further promote trade, investmentand tourism of India into Vietnam.
The conference at the Merchants' Chamberof Commerce & Industry (MCCI) in Kolkata– the capital of the West Bengal state - attracted representatives from 50 Indianbusinesses and many Vietnamese companies, while the event at the Chamber of Commerce in Calcutta saw the participation of 40 enterprises.
Addressing the events, Ambassador Pham Sanh Chau highlighted the closerelationship in history, politics, culture and people-to-people exchangebetween Vietnam and India in general and between Vietnam and West Bengal inparticular, noting that the bilateral relations are increasingly strengthened in the five pillars of politics, defence-security, economy, science and technology, and education - culture.
Two-way trade expanded to over 13 billion USD in 2021 from 200 million USDin 2000, turning India into the 8th biggest trade partner ofVietnam, approaching the 15-billion-USD target set by leaders of the twocountries.
Regarding investment, as of March 20, India had 317 valid projects worth over 1billion USD in Vietnam, ranking 24th out of the 129 countries and territoriesinvesting in the Southeast Asian nation.
The investment ties between the two countries are likely to makenew breakthroughs in the coming years, focusing on the sectors of seaports,energy, infrastructure, oil and gas, and IT.
There is agreat potential for the two countries to promote tourism services as bothhave attractive scenic spots and historical and cultural sites for tourists, AmbassadorChau noted.
With the resumption of direct flights from Kolkata to Hanoi and Ho Chi MinhCity and the increase in frequency of direct flights between the two countries,their tourism is expected to recover and grow strongly in the coming time, theVietnamese diplomat said.
West Bengal and Vietnamese localities can promote cooperation in agriculture,tourism, chemicals, IT, real estate, solar energy, education, pharmaceuticalsand health care, Ambassador Chau said.
Representatives from Indian firms said they are considering thepossibility of cooperation with Vietnamese partnersin some specific fields, and expanding the market for key products ofWest Bengal such as tea, pharmaceuticals, products made from jute fiber.
Theysuggested the embassy support and facilitate the organisation of an Indian businessdelegation to visit and explore cooperation opportunities in business,investment and tourism in Vietnam, and a business-to-business matching eventin the coming time.
The West Bengal state is rich in naturalresources with a thriving tea industry. It is also the leading rice and potatoproducer in India. The main industries of the state are information technology,leather, textiles, agriculture, metals, minerals and tourism. It boasts the over-100-year old Calcutta Stock Exchange (CSE) – the second largest in India.
Meanwhile, the Chamber of Commerce in Calcutta, founded in 1830, is the oldesttrade and industry association in India, grouping businesses, tea, plastics, andinformation technology./.
