Vietnamese Ambassador Lê Linh Lan in Switzerland speaks at the launching event. — VNA/VNS Photo

GENEVA — The Vietnamese Embassy in Switzerland recently held a ceremony to launch the non-profit Switzerland-Vietnam business group (SVBG), which aims to promote exchanges and investment and trade co-operation between enterprises of the two nations.

Based in Lausanne, the SVBG, the first of its kind founded by Vietnamese expatriates in Switzerland, will focus on offering trade information via workshops, forums, and internal bulletins; providing legal consultations and guidance; developing links for technological transfers and improvement; and introducing quality human resources.

It will also make recommendations for a more favourable business climate to agencies of both nations while organising socio-cultural activities serving its goals.

Speaking at the debut ceremony, Vietnamese Ambassador Lê Linh Lan said the group came into being at a special time as Việt Nam has placed the COVID-19 pandemic under control and prepared the best conditions possible to welcome Swiss investors.

Lan said the would embassy support the operation of the SVBG.

According to the diplomat, Switzerland is the sixth-largest European investor in Việt Nam, with its investment totalling US$2 billion, mostly in manufacturing – processing and electricity. Currently, close to 100 Swiss firms are operating in Việt Nam.

Meanwhile, Việt Nam is the fourth-biggest trade partner of Switzerland in ASEAN, with bilateral trade exceeding $3.6 billion in 2019. Since 2012, Việt Nam and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) – the intergovernmental organisation of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland – began negotiations for a trade deal which is expected to be signed this year. — VNS