Hanoi (VNA) – The Vietnam Logistics Forum 2026, themed “Highlands Logistics: Local Connections, Global Reach”, is scheduled to take place in Quy Nhon ward, the central province of Gia Lai, on November 6–7, aiming to seek breakthrough solutions to infrastructure and transport cost bottlenecks to help the central and Central Highlands region's agricultural and forestry products expand their international reach.
The Ministry of Industry and Trade said the 14th annual event is held by the ministry’s Agency of Foreign Trade, Gia Lai province and relevant agencies.
The forum is expected to draw around 600 participants, including representatives of ministries, sectors, central and Central Highlands localities, international organisations, experts, and domestic and foreign manufacturing and trading businesses. Standing Deputy Prime Minister Pham Gia Tuc will attend and deliver remarks, while Prof. Dr Thomas Sim, President of the International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations (FIATA) for 2025–2027, will make a presentation at the event.
The central and Central Highlands region benefits from a seaport network along its coast and East–West economic corridors linking raw material production areas, industrial parks and border gates with markets. However, exports from the region still rely mainly on road transport, while horizontal transport links, cargo collection hubs, cold storage facilities and multimodal transport services have yet to develop in an integrated manner. These shortcomings increase transportation time and costs, highlighting the need for closer connections among production areas, border gates and seaports.
Against this backdrop, the forum will provide a platform to discuss measures for developing the logistics sector amid changing domestic and international conditions, enhancing economic competitiveness, promoting regional development and improving the institutional framework for national logistics management.
Participants will focus on optimising transport corridors from raw material areas to central-region seaports, developing warehousing systems and internationally standardised cold supply chains, and reducing logistics costs.
In addition to the plenary session scheduled for November 7 morning, the forum will feature two panel discussions on improving policies and legal institutions to meet logistics service development requirements in the new context, and unlocking breakthrough opportunities for central Vietnam’s logistics sector.
The sessions will bring together international experts, associations and businesses to discuss emerging trends in green logistics and the digitalisation of global supply chains, with a view to improving the competitiveness of Vietnamese goods.
Information on the agenda and registration procedures for organisations, agencies and the media is available at the official website: https://vlf.logistics.gov.vn./.
