Connecting with FDI firms helps boost wood exports: insiders

Strengthening linkages and cooperation between foreign-invested and domestic enterprises will contribute to promoting the sustainable development of the Vietnamese wood industry, according to insiders.

Statistics from the Vietnam Timber and Forest Product Association (VIFOREST) show that in 2023, the number of FDI enterprises exporting wood and wood products accounted for only 18.8% of the total number of wood exporters in the country, but their export turnover hit 6.24 billion USD, equivalent to 47.4 % of the total of this industry.

Last year, the sector attracted 57 new FDI projects worth around 300 million USD, of which Chinese-invested projects accounted for 49.1% of the total number of projects and 35.5% of the total value.

Cao Thi Cam, an expert from the VIFOREST, said that an increase in activities of FDI enterprises, including export, is partly a result of new-generation free trade agreements that Vietnam is participating in, and partly thanks to the advantage of geographical location and the development of the country's wood industry ecosystem.

To Xuan Phuc, a policy analyst at Forest Trends Organisation, stated that the superiority of FDI enterprises operating in the wood industry needs to be summed up and used as a foundation to create a spill-over effect to domestic firms.

According to Phuc, the connection between FDI and domestic enterprises remains limited at present. Therefore, the government and wood associations need to promote the formation of a suitable institutional and policy environment to encourage the establishment of linkages and the sharing of benefits and responsibilities of the business community.