Events

UNIDO and Sviluppo Basilicata brought forward investment opportunities in Vietnam

Matera, April 26^th. The workshop on the investment opportunities in Vietnam organized by UNIDO together with Sviluppo Basilicata has been concluded. This meeting, characterised by a focus on research and development for design, was a first step towards further analyses allowing the identification of specific networking opportunities, economic collaboration and joint ventures, fostering a reciprocal acquaintance between Vietnamese and Italian enterprises operative within the upholstered furniture industry.

After presenting the “SME Cluster Development” project, managed in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the local Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI), UNIDO illustrated to Italian enterprises the investment opportunities offered by Vietnam, a country that presents interesting prospects and an ideal doorway to the Asian market. Within this framework, three Vietnamese enterprises in the sector presented themselves and were given the opportunity to visit  some enterprises from the upholstered furniture industry in Matera.

In fact, the Puglia and Basilicata regions are working towards a programme agreement for the re-launch of this district in Murge, with the objective of reindustrialising the area, individualising the resources, research & innovation and design plans, and, most importantly, other partners.

That’s why this workshop is the forerunner of the national entrepreneurial mission, promoted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and organised by UNIDO and Confindustria from the 24th to the 26th of May 2012 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The objective of these three days will be to allow Italian enterprises to get to know in first person three of the most promising economic sectors in Vietnam (textile, footwear and woodworking), through the participation in numerous “Enterprises Partnership for Development” meetings with Vietnamese enterprises and local institutions.

TECHNICAL NOTES

In Vietnam wood sector is one of the main markets which contributes to the economy with an export rate of 280 million USD in 2008. This sector has grown up of  7.5% and keeps on promising great development opportunities. Among interested foreign markets, as far as wood exportation from Vietnam is concerned, are USA (25,7 mln USD), Germany (19,9 mln USD), France (7,8 mln USD), Netherlands (9,7 mln USD), Italy (7,6 mln USD). Almost each of the 2000 vietnamese wood companies manifacture end or semi-end products directly from wood raw material. Chairs, together with outdoor and indoor furniture are the Vietnamese most exported products. Many local companies invested in Italian and European technology woodworking state-of-the-art computerized machineries. Besides, a document defining the guidelines for the “wood cluster” project has been lauched, due to the collaboration between Federlegno and the University Consortium, promoting Engineering Master’s Degree approved by the Vietnames National Wood Association.