Illustrative image (Photo: VNA) The deal is a set of policies that includes new measures and efforts totransform the EU’s economy for a sustainable future.
These measures will not limit the bloc to increase its climate ambition for2030 and 2050; supply clean, affordable and secure energy; mobilise industryfor a clean and circular economy; and build and renovate in energy andresource-efficient way.
They will also accelerate the shift to sustainable and smart mobility; design afair, healthy and environmentally-friendly food system; preserve and restoreecosystems and biodiversity; aim at zero pollution for a toxic-freeenvironment; pursue green finance and investment and ensure a just transition.
According to Nguyen Hoang Thuy, Trade Counselor at Vietnam Trade Office inSweden (Concurrently Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Latvia), thegarment and footwear would be two industries that might be affected by thisdeal as the EU was the biggest market for Vietnamese garment and footwearproducts.
The deal would require apparel products manufactured through environmentallyfriendly processes and made with environmentally friendly materials. They wouldbe required to meet sustainable and strict eco-labeling standards. Thus,Vietnamese businesses in this sector needed to adjust their productionprocesses and invest in new technologies to stay competitive, Thuy toldcongthuong.vn.
At the same time, the packaging needed to be made of environmentally friendlymaterials and could be fully recycled. She said that this would affectVietnamese businesses in the field and those using packaging for exportproducts.
The official also outlined agriculture and seafood as other sectors that thedeal could influence.
She explained that the deal set out a more sustainable and environmentallyfriendly approach to agriculture, which would require Vietnamese businesses tomeet new standards for sustainable food production and farming practices,invest in new technology and change manufacturing processes to reduce waste andthe use of hazardous chemicals.
As the deal set a target to reduce the use of energy-intensive materials andswitch to more sustainable materials, the iron and steel would be an affectedsector.
Despite posing challenges for Vietnamese exporters, the deal would also providethem with new business opportunities. Businesses needed to be aware of thechanges that the deal would bring and be ready to adapt to the challenges toremain competitive in the EU market, Thuy said.
She suggested the firms stay informed about the latest developments in thedeal, assess its potential impact on their business operations and exports, andidentify any areas that might need improvement to meet the new sustainabilitystandards.
She said they should also consider reducing greenhouse gas emissions, increasingenergy efficiency, and using recycled materials, advising them to anticipatenew trends to create more sustainable and environmentally friendly products inthe long run.
At the same time, the Vietnamese Government should develop policies andregulations that would facilitate the transition to a more sustainable andenvironmentally friendly economy, such as promoting renewable energy andadopting energy-efficient technologies.
She petitioned the State to urgently develop a policy to monitor and issue carboncertificates for Vietnamese producers and exporters.
Top priority should be also given to monitoring and assessing the impact of thedeal on the Vietnamese economy, especially the most vulnerable sectors, andtaking all necessary steps to address any challenges or opportunities thatmight arise.
Providing financial, technical and training support to businesses, especiallysmall-and medium-sized, to help them adopt more sustainable practices andimprove their competitiveness in the EU market should be also included.
The trade turnover between Vietnam and the EU reached US$76.3 billion lastyear, a year-on-year increase of 5.1%, according to the European-AmericanMarket Department under the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT).
Of this, exports hit 56 billion USD, up 10.2% compared with the 2021’s figure,it said.
Vietnam's trade surplus with the European market hit 35.5 billion USD lastyear.
The EU is currently Vietnam's leading trade partner and third largest exportmarket with an annual export growth rate of 7.5%, accounting for 13.6% of theSoutheast Asian country’s total export turnover in the 2015-21 period.
The market share of Vietnamese goods in the EU's total imports is 1.8%, higherthan that of other Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia (1.2%), Thailand(0.9%), Indonesia (0.7%) and Singapore (0.7%), according to the European StatisticsAgency (Eurostat)./.
VNA
