Berlin (VNA) – Vietnam is a highlypotential market for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) of Germany,President of the German Association for Small- and Medium-sized Businesses(BVMW) Mario Ohoven said at a workshop in Berlin on July 16.

At this event, Vietnamese Ambassador Nguyen MinhVu provided participants, including online audience, an overview of Vietnam’ssocio-economic development and measures to combat COVID-19, recover theeconomy, and assist pandemic-affected people.

He highlighted the country’s potential andadvantages, along with its Government’s policies on attracting foreigninvestors, including SMEs of Germany.

The diplomat also pointed out investmentopportunities for German SMEs in potential sectors like mechanical engineering,automobile manufacturing, support industries, innovation, IT, biotechnology,health care and pharmaceutical production, and finance-banking.

Thanks to the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement(EVFTA), set to take effect on August 1, and the EU-Vietnam InvestmentProtection Agreement (EVIPA) that is waiting for EU parliaments’ ratification,there will be more and more promising cooperation chances in Vietnam for SMEsof Germany and other EU members, Vu noted.

For his part, BVMW President Mario Ohoven spokehighly of Vietnam’s dynamic development and its Government’s resolve to supportSMEs, improve the investment and business climate, and promote the economy’sadaptability to the digitalisation trend.

Describing Vietnam as a highly potential marketfor German SMEs, he also suggested the country further improve its logisticssector, human resources, and administrative procedures so as to create moreoptimal conditions for German SMEs’ activities.

Meanwhile, Director of the Germany Trade &Invest’s Vietnam office Frauke Schmitz-Bauderdick and BVMW Representative inVietnam Ludwig Graf Westarp spoke highly of the Southeast Asian nation’seconomic development and success in COVID-19 control, adding that it stillsustains fair growth amid the pandemic and holds much potential for Germanfirms in the fields of public investment, supply chains and consumer goods.

They held that with its increasingly transparentand favourable business climate, the EVFTA, and the EVIPA, Vietnam is emergingas an attractive investment destination for German businesses.

At the workshop, the Vietnamese Embassy and theBVMW agreed to enhance cooperation in organising thematic workshops, sharinginformation, connecting the countries’ enterprises, and arranging visits forGerman SMEs to explore the Vietnamese market.

Founded in 1975, the BVMW represents about900,000 SMEs in Germany and currently has 55 overseas representative offices.Its office in Vietnam was set up in June this year./.