Seminar Held on Vietnam-Thailand Economic Cooperation in Era of Covid

The seminar was attended by the Ambassador of Vietnam to Thailand Phan Chi Thanh, Ambassador of Thailand to Vietnam Nikorndej Balankura and 15 speakers top economics experts and business managers in Vietnam, Thailand, and international organizations.

Taking place when Vietnam, Thailand and other countries continued to be impacted by the spread of the Delta variants and extended social lockdown measures that disrupted economic activities, the seminar aimed to share the information, evaluation and recommendations from experts and business managers on economic recovery policies and boosting Vietnam – Thailand trade and investment relations.

The seminar was also held to celebrate 45 years of establishing diplomatic relations between the two countries (1976-2021).

The seminar attracted over 200 participants from government agencies, localities and businesses from both countries. Photo: Vietnam Times

In his opening speech, Ambassador Chi Thanh underlined the accomplishments in the economic cooperation between Vietnam and Thailand.

Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, both countries had been maintaining positive bilateral trade growth, achieving approximately US$ 13 billion in bilateral turnovers in the first 8 months of 2021, up 30% compared to the same period in 2020.

Thailand remained Vietnam’s top trade partner in the ASEAN and Thai investors continued to invest in Vietnam, with over 600 projects and total investment capital of US$ 13 billion.

The ambassador thanked Thai businesses for their support to Vietnam in fighting against the pandemic, which included financial donations to Vietnam’s Covid Vaccine Fund and sending medical equipment to hospitals in Vietnam.

Ambassador Chi Thanh affirmed that the government of Vietnam had been actively implementing Covid control measures, creating favorable conditions for economic, production and business activities in the new normal.

Ambassador Balankura affirmed that the Covid-19 pandemic had been bringing unprecedented challenges but also new development opportunities to businesses.

The ambassador added that the private sector should therefore adapt to the new normal period that involved digital transformation and transformation to the green and sustainable economy.

In the first session on economic recovery solutions in Vietnam and Thailand, economic experts highlighted that while the Covid-19 pandemic continued to have complicated occurrences, most countries had begun to prepare for economic recovery by developing suitable macro-economy policies for the transforming process.

Ambassador of Vietnam to Thailand Phan Chi Thanh delivered a speech to launch the seminar. Photo: Vietnam Times

Nguyen Anh Duong from Kasikorn Bank believed that Vietnam had numerous advantages in economic recovery such as possessing an open economy, engaging in new-generation free trade agreements and encouraging digital transformation and transformation to a green and sustainable economy.

President of the Thai-Vietnamese Business Council Sanan Angubolkul and General Secretary of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce Nguyen Quang Vinh noted that there should be a clear roadmap and safety measure to reopen the countries, the keys of which were accelerating Covid vaccination and building the capacity for businesses in responding to the pandemic.

Director of the Thai Investment Promotion Centre in Vietnam Audsitti Sroithong said the bio-circular-green economic model would become a future trend to help countries recover and open big opportunities for Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam to invest in Thailand and vice versa in the fields of smart agriculture and smart transportation.

Meanwhile, senior advisor at the Bank for Investment and Development Can Van Luc proposed accelerating the digital economy transformation to make use of Vietnam’s advantages and prepare the necessary infrastructure and human resources for digital transformation. Meanwhile, Johnathan Wong, an economic expert from UNESCAP, believed that countries should boost inclusive growth, creating opportunities and equal access for vulnerable groups and improving the capacity of the private sector.

The Ambassador of Thailand to Vietnam spoke at the seminar. Photo: Vietnam Times

In the second session on trade and investment amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, businesses shared information about their ongoing measures to maintain business activities and gave practical and valid recommendations to the governments of Vietnam and Thailand to enhance economic development, trade and investment and ensure the supply chain.

Specifically, participating businesses recommended the governments of both countries to soon design a roadmap to reopen the economy, promptly propose consistent measures so businesses could be well-prepared, limit the impacts on production and businesses activities, reduce financial burdens, and address human resource shortages, reduced production capacity and disrupted transportation and logistics.

The participants also appreciated and affirmed their compliance with Vietnam’s strict Covid control measures, added that they hoped to continue to support the government of Vietnam in curbing the pandemic and recovering the economy.

Closing the seminar, the speakers and participants praised the outcomes of the seminar, expressing their belief that the recommendations by experts and businesses from both countries would contribute to economic recovery and boosting trade and investment between Vietnam and Thailand.

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