ĐÀ NẴNG — Việt Nam and Đà Nẵng in particular could emerge as huge potential markets for Japanese businesses.
The city and the country could witness investment in the fields of hi-tech agriculture, hospitality, human resource training and service, as well as environment, information technology, energy and healthcare for the elderly.
This was announced by Noboru Kondo, CEO of Brain Works Group, at the 50th Asia Business Conference in Đà Nẵng on Thursday, which attracted the participation of over 200 businesses from Japan and Việt Nam.
He said Vietnamese and Japanese businesses should develop a mutual understanding of their lifestyles, cultures and customs to boost co-operation.
“Local businesses should take advantage of the know-how of their Japanese partners to produce popular products in Japanese styles, instead of importing them from Japan. However, Đà Nẵng was not yet as known to Japanese investors as HCM City and Hà Nội, so the central city has drawn only modest investment projects from Japan,” Kondo said.
“Việt Nam and Japan should co-operate in agriculture and its supportive industries – a deficient sector – to boost the industrialisation process in the country. Việt Nam is perceived by Japanese investors as a friendly destination and a gateway to the Mekong region,” Kondo added.
Kondo, who has been doing business in Việt Nam for the past 20 years, suggested Đà Nẵng advertise more and build Japanese townships to attract Japanese investors and tourists.
He said Japanese investors would find potential industries in Đà Nẵng in fisheries, retail, hi-tech farming, hospitality and the restaurant business.
The vice chairman of the central city, Phùng Tấn Viết, stressed the city would accord top priority and ensure smooth conditions for Japanese investors by providing good infrastructure.
“We have considerably developed traffic infrastructure, such as deep sea ports and airports. Some big brand names from Japan, including Mabuchi Motors, Foster Electric, Keiki and Tokai, have invested in the city,” Viết said.
He said the city, which is situated in central Việt Nam and at the end of East-West Economic Corridors linking Laos, Thailand, Myanmar and Việt Nam, would help boost exports and trade between local manufacturers and regional markets, as well as industrial centres in Bình Định, Quảng Nam and Quảng Ngãi.
He said the city should also set up a one-stop shop and a Japanese desk to support Japanese investors in Đà Nẵng.
The city organised an investment promotion week for members of the Japanese Business Association, also called Keidanren, and 120 businesses in Japan last year.
According to the Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO), Japanese companies started 176 new projects, of which 40 per cent were in the field of industrial manufacturing, last year.
Đà Nẵng has launched a direct flight to Narita, Japan, with seven flights per week, and plans to open a new direct route to Osaka this August.
Mai Đăng Hiếu, vice director of Đà Nẵng’s Foreign Affairs Department, said the city opened a liaison office in Tokyo and Yokohama to provide up-to-date investment and tourism information to Japanese businesses.
He said the city also hosted the annual Việt Nam-Japan Cultural Exchange every summer to boost tourism and exchange among Vietnamese and Japanese partners.
A survey by JETRO pointed out that 66 per cent of the 458 Japanese firms based in Việt Nam plan to expand their businesses during the next one or two years.
Shoko Chukin Bank from Japan revealed that 40.7 per cent of the 3,750 respondents from various businesses in Japan said they would invest in Việt Nam.
According to the latest report, Đà Nẵng has attracted 305 foreign investment projects worth $3.37 billion.
Japan ranks fourth among the top investors in Đà Nẵng with over 90 projects worth $500 million, of which 55 projects involve manufacturing, creating 30,000 jobs for the local people.
Exports from Japanese enterprises accounted for 37 per cent of the city’s total imports, while 30 per cent of the city’s industrial production value comes from Japanese FDI projects.
Route Inn Group from Japan will develop a coastal resort in Đà Nẵng, the first of its kind in Viet Nam, with total investment of US$18 million.
FPT Software Đà Nẵng began its 10,000-Bridge Software Engineer (BrSE) programme in co-operation with Japanese partners.
In 2014, Đà Nẵng also included Japanese language education in its curriculum at some high schools and colleges. — VNS