VNS | 18-12-2008
Opportunities for Vietnamese in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) abound since a Vietnamese embassy opened there this year. Ambassador Nguyen Quang Khai talks with Vietnam Investment Review.
How do you view the UAE market at this time?
The UAE is small but its market is large. Imported goods are not only consumed domestically but also exported to other countries. Many nations attach much importance to this market, which is viewed as a good environment for business development. Trade revenue between the UAE and other countries is up to US$375 billion per year.
Presently, there are representatives from the ministries of Industry and Trade and Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs in the UAE. Representatives from the Ministry of Planning and Investment are expected to work in the UAE in the near future. As scheduled, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung will make an official visit to the UAE by early next year. Many co-operative agreements between the two sides are expected to be signed during his visit.
I believe that 2009 will be a year with many opportunities for Vietnamese enterprises to do business in the UAE.
But, it is not simple to penetrate a new market, even when diplomatic and political relationships have been established, is it?
I believe that Vietnamese enterprises can export many kinds of goods to the UAE because this is an easy market, with a place for both low and high-quality goods. Goods for export are not taxed, apart from the five per cent customs tax levied on all commodities. This creates very favourable conditions for Vietnamese enterprises.
Is a lack of competitiveness by Vietnamese enterprises an obstacle?
Many Vietnamese commodities such as clothes, shoes and sandals and agro-products are competitive in the market. The shortcoming is that they have not yet taken an initiative in developing business in the UAE. Maybe it is just that enterprises lack information about this promising market, not that their commodities are unable to compete with others.
The Vietnamese Embassy in the UAE is willing to support enterprises which are interested in exporting to the country.
The year 2009 is predicted to be very difficult for businesses due to the global financial crisis. Will the UAE market be affected?
UAE cannot entirely escape the finance storm, but will experience it at a different level. Thanks to great human ingenuity and abundant foreign currency reserves, the market will escape without much damage. G20 nations have proposed that the UAE co-operate and support them to lessen the crisis impact. This is an indicator of the country’s great potential.
Viet Nam is an investment address which many big UAE investors are interested in. Many giant corporations, including Samur Dubai, Dubai World, Damu in Abu Dhabi and Ipic, have contacted us to learn about investment opportunities in Viet Nam.
Do you think that a large investment capital from the UAE will be poured into Viet Nam next year?
I do not dare predict this. But under the memorandum of understanding signed between the UAE and HCM City, Binh Thuan and Quang Ninh province, there are many feasible projects under consideration. Potential projects include a five-star Ha Long Star hotel complex, a project on West Ha Long worth $10 billion, Van Don International Airport, a road project from Ha Long to Mong Cai in Quang Ninh and Thu Thiem and Hiep Phuoc urban areas in HCM City. A number of agriculture investment projects are also in the pipeline. We are co-ordinating with some regions to find areas to plant rice for export to the UAE.
In particular, the UAE has proposed a project to build an Asian Village in the UAE which will receive Vietnamese labourers to work. This is a new idea and I think that we should seriously consider it. If everything goes according to plan, the UAE will need 300,000 foreign labourers by 2015. If Viet Nam takes advantage of this opportunity, the labour market’s output will be stable and safe.
Opportunities for Vietnamese in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) abound since a Vietnamese embassy opened there this year. Ambassador Nguyen Quang Khai talks with Vietnam Investment Review.
How do you view the UAE market at this time?
The UAE is small but its market is large. Imported goods are not only consumed domestically but also exported to other countries. Many nations attach much importance to this market, which is viewed as a good environment for business development. Trade revenue between the UAE and other countries is up to US$375 billion per year.
Presently, there are representatives from the ministries of Industry and Trade and Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs in the UAE. Representatives from the Ministry of Planning and Investment are expected to work in the UAE in the near future. As scheduled, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung will make an official visit to the UAE by early next year. Many co-operative agreements between the two sides are expected to be signed during his visit.
I believe that 2009 will be a year with many opportunities for Vietnamese enterprises to do business in the UAE.
But, it is not simple to penetrate a new market, even when diplomatic and political relationships have been established, is it?
I believe that Vietnamese enterprises can export many kinds of goods to the UAE because this is an easy market, with a place for both low and high-quality goods. Goods for export are not taxed, apart from the five per cent customs tax levied on all commodities. This creates very favourable conditions for Vietnamese enterprises.
Is a lack of competitiveness by Vietnamese enterprises an obstacle?
Many Vietnamese commodities such as clothes, shoes and sandals and agro-products are competitive in the market. The shortcoming is that they have not yet taken an initiative in developing business in the UAE. Maybe it is just that enterprises lack information about this promising market, not that their commodities are unable to compete with others.
The Vietnamese Embassy in the UAE is willing to support enterprises which are interested in exporting to the country.
The year 2009 is predicted to be very difficult for businesses due to the global financial crisis. Will the UAE market be affected?
UAE cannot entirely escape the finance storm, but will experience it at a different level. Thanks to great human ingenuity and abundant foreign currency reserves, the market will escape without much damage. G20 nations have proposed that the UAE co-operate and support them to lessen the crisis impact. This is an indicator of the country’s great potential.
Viet Nam is an investment address which many big UAE investors are interested in. Many giant corporations, including Samur Dubai, Dubai World, Damu in Abu Dhabi and Ipic, have contacted us to learn about investment opportunities in Viet Nam.
Do you think that a large investment capital from the UAE will be poured into Viet Nam next year?
I do not dare predict this. But under the memorandum of understanding signed between the UAE and HCM City, Binh Thuan and Quang Ninh province, there are many feasible projects under consideration. Potential projects include a five-star Ha Long Star hotel complex, a project on West Ha Long worth $10 billion, Van Don International Airport, a road project from Ha Long to Mong Cai in Quang Ninh and Thu Thiem and Hiep Phuoc urban areas in HCM City. A number of agriculture investment projects are also in the pipeline. We are co-ordinating with some regions to find areas to plant rice for export to the UAE.
In particular, the UAE has proposed a project to build an Asian Village in the UAE which will receive Vietnamese labourers to work. This is a new idea and I think that we should seriously consider it. If everything goes according to plan, the UAE will need 300,000 foreign labourers by 2015. If Viet Nam takes advantage of this opportunity, the labour market’s output will be stable and safe.
