Vietnam and the Republic of Seychelles should make the most of all opportunities to further promote economic cooperation between the two countries in the future, a senior commercial official of Seychelles has said.

Chairman of the Seychelles Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) Marco Francis made the suggestion at a business forum held in Hanoi on August 29 on the occasion of Seychelles President James Alix Michel’s official visit to Vietnam.

Francis also said Seychelles pledges to create favourable conditions for enterprises of both countries to speed up cooperation and investment.

He added that through the country, Vietnam will have the opportunity to access larger markets such as the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa, the Southern African Development Community and the Indian Ocean Commission.

The Vietnam-Seychelles Business Forum provided an opportunity for enterprises of both countries to share the latest information on policies and the business and investment environment in each country as well as seek potential partners.

Addressing the forum, Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) Chairman Vu Tien Loc said two-way trade between Vietnam and the island nation in 2012 was about 2.2 million USD. Seychelles leads the seven African countries investing in Vietnam with eight projects worth 33.6 million USD.

Vietnam exports rice, chemicals and fishing nets to the country. Its investments in Vietnam are in the fields of ready mixed concrete, cement, plastics, springs for industrial production, processing and packing seafood, fruit and vegetables.

In the framework of the visit, VCCI and SCCI signed a cooperative agreement to support and boost trade between the two countries’ business communities.-VNA