HCM CITY — Cambodia and Myanmar offer huge investment opportunities in the agricultural sector for Vietnamese firms, experts said.

The two countries have made a successful switch from a centrally planned economy to a market-oriented one, and their productivity has increased significantly while labour costs remain competitive.

Speaking at a seminar in HCM City on Thursday on the opportunities for agricultural investment in Cambodia and Myanmar, Meach Yady, chief of agricultural marketing at Cambodia’s Department of Planning and Statistics, said agriculture accounts for 25 per cent of his country’s GDP and gets special attention from the Government.

It has also adopted policies to encourage businesses from Việt Nam and other countries in the region to invest in its agriculture, he said.

Cambodia is a promising market for Vietnamese firms, who can invest in growing and processing fruits and vegetables, cassava, maize, mung beans, and seeds, animal feed production, dairy farming and fisheries, he said.

Speaking about investment opportunities in Myanmar, Prof. Dr. Myint Thein, chairman of the Myanmar Veterinary Association and former director general of the Directorate of Livestock and Fisheries, said besides investing in growing and processing key items like rice, wheat, maize, oil seeds, fruits and vegetables, Vietnamese firms also can invest in production of agricultural machinery and supply post-harvest preservation and processing technologies.

Myint Thein said Myanmar admires Việt Nam’s achievements in the agricultural sector, especially exports of processed and fisheries products, and wants to co-operate in these areas.

He apprised Vietnamese businesses about his country’s Investment Law, incentives for foreign investors, and issues related to import-export of farm produce.

Many Vietnamese firms have invested in the two countries in various sectors, including agriculture, Nguyễn Bá Vinh, director of the Minh Vi Exhibition and Advertisement Services Co, Ltd, said.

“Myanmar and Cambodia expect more investments from Vietnamese businesses in the agricultural sector in the near future.”

To help Vietnamese firms understand more about the Cambodian and Myanmarese markets and explore business and investment opportunities there, his company would organise an international exhibition each in Cambodia and Myanmar on agriculture and fisheries, he said.

Agri-Livestock- Aqua Fisheries would be held from September 5 to 7 in Phnom Penh and from September 26 to 28 in Yangon, he said.

They would showcase the latest technologies and equipment as well as agriculture and fisheries products, he said.

They would also feature business matching between suppliers and distributors and conferences to help participants understand the investment opportunities in the two markets

They are expected to attract 200 exhibitors from 15 countries and territories, including Korea, Singapore, Thailand, Japan, Taiwan, Turkey, Việt Nam, China, and India. — VNS