Trần Quốc Toản, deputy director of the Trade Promotion Agency. — VNS Photo Ly Ly Cao

HÀ NỘI — The first Glorious Spring Fair 2026 is expected to become an effective national-level trade promotion channel, enabling Vietnamese enterprises to connect directly with international buyers and expand export opportunities without having to participate in overseas exhibitions.

In an interview with Việt Nam News and Law reporter, Trần Quốc Toản, deputy director of the Trade Promotion Agency under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, outlined the strategic orientation behind the fair and broader efforts to enhance the competitiveness of Vietnamese businesses.

What key trade promotion activities has the agency implemented to support Vietnamese enterprises?

Over the past period and in the time ahead, the Trade Promotion Agency has been rolling out a wide range of activities, focusing on strengthening the competitiveness of Vietnamese enterprises so they can boost exports and integrate into global value chains.

Each year, the agency develops plans for businesses to participate in major international fairs such as the China-ASEAN Expo, the China International Import Expo in Shanghai, the Anuga food fairs in Germany, ASEAN fairs in France and Gulfood in Dubai.

In parallel, we organise trade delegations that allow Vietnamese companies to access potential markets and seek partners directly. We also conduct technical assistance programmes, forums, conferences and specialised training sessions to help enterprises build, develop and protect their brands while improving access to market information and production and business technologies.

Additionally, monthly trade promotion briefings coordinated with Việt Nam’s trade offices abroad provide market updates, share experiences and help address difficulties faced by businesses in foreign markets, thereby enhancing their export capacity.

Through the National Brand Programme, the agency has intensified promotional campaigns for quality Vietnamese products, contributing to elevating the image and position of Vietnamese brands domestically and internationally.

Will national fairs such as the Glorious Spring Fair invite foreign participants?

This is indeed a direction assigned by the Government to the Ministry of Industry and Trade. We are developing a chain of national-scale fairs in Việt Nam with regional and international reach.

Through large national events like the first Glorious Spring Fair 2026, we aim to attract foreign buyers and exhibitors to attend in person, enabling Vietnamese enterprises to export directly within the fair’s national exhibition space.

Following the success of previous events such as the Autumn Fair and with high expectations for the inaugural Spring Fair, we believe this national fair series will serve as a highly effective channel for Vietnamese businesses to export and connect with international customers without necessarily travelling to major overseas exhibitions.

Cross-border e-commerce involves significant costs. How is the agency supporting enterprises that want to accelerate exports via digital platforms?

Cross-border e-commerce is a priority direction assigned by the Ministry of Industry and Trade. The Trade Promotion Agency has been working closely with major platforms such as Alibaba, Amazon and TikTok to ensure Vietnamese enterprises receive comprehensive technical support and can fully leverage these platforms.

Under our cooperation with Alibaba, we have launched a Vietnam National Pavilion on the platform. In 2025, 100 enterprises were selected to promote their products through this pavilion, receiving effective technical and financial support from Alibaba’s team, which helped generate positive business results.

Building on this model, the agency plans to select 200 enterprises in 2026 for similar support.

We have also partnered with TikTok Shop to provide training, livestream selling skills and online sales support for small and medium-sized enterprises as well as household businesses.

In one pilot livestream session supporting cooperatives and business households in Lào Cai Province, revenue reached nearly VNĐ1 billion from a single product, smoked buffalo meat, demonstrating the effectiveness of e-commerce channels.

Our message to businesses is to boldly embrace digital transformation and apply e-commerce models, especially SMEs, as these are efficient channels for product distribution and export.

How are enterprises selected for participation in national e-commerce initiatives? And how are they supported?

The Trade Promotion Agency sponsors and works with platform partners to ensure participating enterprises receive the best incentives, including training, one-on-one consultations, in-depth advisory services and enhanced promotional tools to improve search visibility.

Selection is conducted through a screening process. For example, while thousands of companies may register, only around 200 with strong potential and quality products are chosen. The agency collaborates with platform technical teams to supervise the process.

Goods must meet quality standards before being placed in the national pavilion, effectively serving as certification of product credibility and reputation while offering participating enterprises additional advantages. — BIZHUB/VNS