HCM City (VNA)🧜 - The recently-signed Regional ComprehensiveEconomic Partnership (RCEP) agreement will create opportunities for Vietnam’sagricultural products to extend their reach in the region and the world, experts have said.

Le Duy Minh, President of the Vietnam Farms and Agricultural EnterprisesAssociation, told a meeting in Ho Chi Minh City on January 15 that the agriculturesector has been integrating intensively and extensively into the world but alsofaces considerable difficulties and challenges, including the impact of theCOVID-19 pandemic, climate change, trade disputes between major economies, and anincrease in technical barriers in many countries. Vietnam signed a number of important economic deals in 2020, heralding anew era of economic integration with opportunities to expand export markets andattract more domestic and foreign investment. Among the deals, the RCEP, which gathers together 10 ASEAN countriesand five partners (the Republic of Korea, China, Japan, Australia, and NewZealand), is the world’slargest free trade agreement (FTA), as it covers a market of about 2.2 billionconsumers and accounts for some 30 percent of the global GDP. Minh said the commitments in the RCEP to open up goods, services, andinvestment markets, simplify customs procedures, set up trade-facilitatingrules of origin, and minimise trade barriers are expected to boost thedevelopment of regional and global value chains and foster member economies,including Vietnam. Dang Phuc Nguyen, Secretary General of the Vietnam Fruit and VegetablesAssociation, said the country could be one of the greatest beneficiaries fromthe RCEP, as most other members have strong demand for goods where Vietnamholds strengths, such as agricultural and aquatic products. Thanks to the harmonisation of rules of origin between the RCEP members,Vietnam’s exports can better meet requirements and benefit from preferentialtariffs to increase shipments to member countries like Japan, the Republic ofKorea, Australia, and New Zealand, he said. These countries also have relatively similar import standards andconsumer tastes, not to mention lower logistics costs and more conducivetransportation thanks to their relatively close geographical proximity to eachother, Nguyen said. According to the General Director of the Vina T&T company, NguyenDinh Tung, a short-term benefit created by the RCEP is favourable conditionsbeing created for talks on opening export markets for more agriculturalproducts. Commitments and trade facilitation measures under the deal will alsopromote the growth of new supply chains, thus boosting international-standardagricultural production. Apart from the opportunities, participants also pointed to a host ofchallenges, such as satisfying rules of origin and quality standards and thecompetition from foreign rivals in both the domestic and foreign markets. Tung suggested businesses view FTAs, including the RCEP, as a chance toimprove product quality, perfect supply chain management, and promotecompetitiveness to further meet the market's demand./.