HÀ NỘI – Local electronic firms have been urged to enhance compliance with established regulations, especially international labour standards, in order to improve competitiveness and to engage in the global supply chain, heard a conference on Tuesday.

The conference was jointly held by the Việt Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) and the International Labour Organisation to promote law compliance across the electronics sector supply chain.

The VCCI said that multinational groups and electronics suppliers must co-operate and exchange experiences to promote application of international labour standards at local firms.

The VCCI promised to develop support programmes with aims to improve productivity, reduce risks which might arise from labour disputes and enhance businesses’ reputations.

Specially, Việt Nam must create policies that promote the development of the electronics industry into a spearhead sector of the economy.

Electronics were major export products of Việt Nam which earned a revenue of US$18.96 billion in 2016, representing a rise of 21.5 per cent over the previous year.

Latest updates from the General Statistics Office show that exports of electronic products reached $13.6 billion in the first seven months of this year, rising by 43.3 per cent over the same period last year. Major import markets include the US, EU and China.

Experts, however, say that the Vietnamese electronics industry is largely dependent on foreign-invested firms, while the cooperation between local and foreign firms remains loose.

Việt Nam is promoting the development of support industries, including electronics components, with an aim to meet 60 per cent of the market demand by 2020 and 80 per cent by 2030. —  VNS