The Gallagher Convention Centre in Johannesburg is hosting the 5th Joint Trade Committee (JTC) meeting to strengthen bilateral economic relations between South Africa and Vietnam.
The two-day JTC will conclude on Thursday, November 24, 2022.
The JTC meeting, which is conducted on an alternate year basis, aims to strengthen bilateral economic connections between the two nations.
This year’s session is led by Nomalungelo Gina, Deputy Minister of Trade, Industry, and Competition, and her counterpart from the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade (MOIT), Vice Minister Do Thang Hai.
According to Gina, this year’s JTC meeting will focus on trade promotion and facilitation, including market access for South African agricultural products in Vietnam; cooperation on investment promotion and facilitation in the automotive sector; capacity building in the furniture sector; and cooperation on mineral resources.
“At the 4th JTC meeting, which took place in Vietnam in 2019, we had affirmed that South Africa considers Vietnam as an important partner in South-east Asia, and we had undertaken to continue working closely together in carrying out measures to strengthen friendship and economic, trade and investment relations.
“Unfortunately, our momentum to concretise these concessions was dealt a devastating blow by the COVID-19 pandemic. Now that we have learned to coexist with the pandemic, we will ensure that these goals are achieved speedily,” Gina said.
According to the Deputy Minister, a discussion on measures to remove bottlenecks and create more optimal conditions for trade, investment, and business partnerships will also take place.
“We will look into solutions to boost our economies’ connectivity, expand markets for each other’s goods, and capitalise on their strengths and resources to help with each country’s development,” Gina said.