Investment encouraging policies offered by the Vietnamese Government
and localities were introduced at an economic forum held recently in
Durban city, South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province by the Vietnamese
Embassy in South Africa.
Addressing the
Vietnam-South Africa Trade, Investment and Tourism Promotion Forum on
October 31, Vietnamese Ambassador Le Huy Hoang affirmed that Vietnam
attaches importance to developing its multi-faceted relations with South
Africa, including KwaZulu-Natal province and Durban port city.
The Ambassador and Trade Counsellor Nguyen Hong Tien then answered
local businesses’ queries, clarifying Vietnam’s policies to attract
investment as well as its support measures on tariffs and
infrastructure.
Besides announcing a list of
projects calling for foreign investment from now until 2020, the
Vietnamese side also introduced the country’s outstanding exports
particularly tra fish and rice as well as major tourist attractions such
as the World Heritage sites of Ha Long Bay, the ancient imperial city
of Hue and the old port town of Hoi An.
The
Vietnamese representatives asked for further assistance from the South
African Government and KwaZulu-Natal province in granting visas for
Vietnamese enterprises.
Andrew Layman, Chief
Executive of the Durban Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said his
office is willing to serve as a bridge connecting Durban and
KwaZulu-Natal businesses with Vietnamese partners, expressing his hope
that Vietnam will help South African businesses to expand their ties
with other countries in Asia.
Both sides
expressed hopes that the two countries will soon sign agreements on
double taxation avoidance and banking-finance in order to protect the
legitimate rights of their businesses.
In the
first nine months of 2014, two-way trade between Vietnam and South
Africa reached nearly 900 million USD. It is forecast to hit 1.3 billion
USD this year.-VNA