A worker of the YPE Vina Co Ltd is checking electronic circuit board products. Việt Nam had issued preferential policies to develop supporting industries. — VNA/VNS Photo Hoàng Hùng

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam needed to develop a sustainable supporting industry by increasing the competitiveness of its products and advancing the efficiency of the production and automation processes, according to Ambassador of Sweden to Việt Nam Ann Mawe.

“Việt Nam is in a unique position to strengthen its authority as a leading alternative manufacturing choice. However, Việt Nam is facing a bigger challenge – increasing value as part of the global supply chain, rather than increasing merely trade volume,” she said.

In order to stay competitive and relevant, Việt Nam needed to keep up with the latest trends and manufacturing technology, she said.

“In this regard, Sweden is much experienced and willing to assist Việt Nam, so that Việt Nam is positioned advantageously and best equipped to embrace Industry 4.0. We also want to help Việt Nam capture the opportunities the EVFTA will bring, as well as address challenges pertaining to financing,” Mawe said at a workshop held by the Embassy of Sweden in Hà Nội on Tuesday to discuss enhancing competitiveness in the context of supply chain diversification.

“Ericsson expects over two-thirds of the world’s manufacturing sites to reside in Asia by 2025, with Việt Nam increasingly becoming a major manufacturing and investment hub for multinational companies,” Denis Brunetti, Ericsson president in Việt Nam, Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos, told Việt Nam News.

Through Industry 4.0 and enabled by 5G technology, factories would become more efficient and productive across Việt Nam, driving labour productivity growth rates of over 7 per cent per annum by 2025, he said.

Lê Huyền Nga, head of the Support Industry Division at the Ministry of Industry and Trade, said support industries played a key role in the country's economic development and international integration.

Việt Nam had issued preferential policies to develop support industries, Nga said. Of which, the Government issued Resolution 115/NQ-CP in June 2020 to promote the development of support industries until 2030.

The resolution sets targets that by 2025, those industries would be able to manufacture highly-competitive products that met 45 per cent of domestic demand and accounted for about 11 per cent of industrial production value. Those figures would increase to 70 per cent and 14 per cent, respectively, by 2030.

The resolution also has specific targets for the textile, garment, footwear and high-tech sectors, Nga said.

Swedish companies had been developing their businesses in Việt Nam to help develop the country's industrial sectors, according to the Swedish Ambassador. A prime example was Ericsson which was helping the Government to accelerate the adoption of Industry 4.0. Meanwhile, ABB recently provided 1,200 robots for VinFast. The two companies were also establishing a state-of-the-art smart manufacturing facility in Việt Nam. Atlas Copco and Hexagon, with their solutions for the manufacturing sector, were also contributing greatly to the development of several projects in Việt Nam.

Swedish companies had a lot of experience in providing safe, sustainable and environmentally friendly manufacturing solutions, and they were helping local enterprises to develop the support industries, said Björn Savlid, Trade Commissioner of Sweden to Việt Nam.

Sweden is considered one of the most sustainable and innovative countries in the world, ranked second in the Global Innovation Index. Swedish companies have a long history of providing world-class solutions to manufacturing and industrial applications. — VNS