Bilateral trade between Vietnam and Cambodia is targeted at over 10 billion USD

Going back in history 55 years ago (June 24, 1967 – June 24, 2022), Vietnam and Cambodia officially established diplomatic relations, marking a new historical page in the relationship between the two countries. On the basis of long-standing historical relations and from the anti-colonial struggle, the establishment of diplomatic relations has created momentum for the cooperation relationship between the two peoples in various fields, especially the economic sector. economic and commercial. This is considered a bright spot in the relationship between the two countries, making an important contribution to promoting the two countries’ development and prosperity.

From 2020 to now, the Covid-19 epidemic broke out and complicated developments, both Vietnam and Cambodia had to strain themselves to cope with and prevent the pandemic, but bilateral trade turnover between the two countries still thrived. strong and achieve many impressive results. According to data from the General Department of Vietnam Customs, the total two-way trade turnover in 2020 will reach over 5 billion USD, in 2021 it will over 9 billion USD; In the first quarter of 2022 alone, it reached nearly 3.4 billion USD, it is expected that in 2022 it can reach over 10 billion USD.

Explaining the reason for the sharp increase in trade turnover between Vietnam and Cambodia in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen said that the main reason is the foundation of good relations between the two countries Cambodia – Vietnam.

“The trade turnover between Cambodia and Vietnam has increased sharply because Cambodia has a good relationship with Vietnam. During the period affected by the Covid-19 epidemic, Cambodian exports to Vietnam still increased by more than 300%. Therefore, it can be said that the economy between neighboring countries can complement each other,” Prime Minister Hun Sen said.

In order to further promote economic, trade and investment cooperation, the two governments have agreed to build and implement an open door mechanism for inter-country import and export activities. , labor cooperation, customs procedures, entry and exit and trade regulations, creating favorable conditions for businesses to invest in each other’s markets.

At the same time, perfecting mechanisms and preferential policies for enterprises in labor training, supporting enterprises to expand production and business, conducting investment and trade promotion, organizing forums, etc. participate in fairs and market promotion in Cambodia and Vietnam; diversify Vietnam’s investment activities in Cambodia and vice versa.

Currently, Vietnam has about 190 effective investment projects in Cambodia, with a total registered capital of nearly 3 billion USD, ranking 5th among countries investing in Cambodia. In which, the main sector is agriculture (accounting for nearly 70% of total registered capital), the rest are fields such as finance, banking, insurance, telecommunications, healthcare, construction, tourism – tourism hotels, real estate and other services. In the opposite direction, Cambodia currently has 21 projects under construction in Vietnam with a capital ranging from 64 million USD.

However, according to Mr. Vu Chi Thanh, Head of Economic Department, Embassy of Vietnam in Cambodia, besides the achievements, economic, trade and investment cooperation activities between the two countries still face some challenges. certain number of difficulties. For example, in the process of implementing administrative procedures are still complicated, there is no consensus from the central to the local; The support and orientation for business activities is still fragmented and lacking in connection.

According to Mr. Vu Chi Thanh, in order to strengthen and ensure the effectiveness of bilateral cooperation, the two sides need to implement a number of solutions to further promote economic and trade cooperation.

“First, it is necessary to ensure goods trade, create favorable conditions for transportation and border trade. Second, promote trade and investment promotion activities and connect businesses. Third, Vietnam should have a key investment plan to turn Cambodia into a processing and raw material supply center for Vietnam under the 1+1 model, in order to take advantage of its comparative advantage in large land fund and Cambodian labor. Fourth, strengthen economic connectivity between the bordering provinces of the two countries, build bonded warehouses on the border gate area to ensure timely supply of goods.

In the coming time, Vietnam and Cambodia will continue to promote and constantly improve the efficiency of cooperation in the fields of economy, trade and investment, in order to create new driving forces for the development of each country. contribute to bringing the comprehensive cooperation relationship between the two countries deeper and more effective.

According to Van Do, Phung Kien