A trial co-operation programme between Ha Noi and neighbouring localities was critical to boosting trade and stabilising the regional market, a seminar heard last week.
The programme has helped improve organisation of the regional distribution system and facilitated the exploration of the range of food, agricultural and seafood products that are produced in key northern economic provinces.
The provinces, including Ha Noi, Hai Phong, Quang Ninh, Vinh Phuc, Bac Ninh, Hai Duong and Hung Yen, play a key role in the economic development of the entire Song Hong Delta region.
Participants said that each locality had its own potential to develop specific industries and commerce. However, the potential would remain untapped if there was no effort to co-operate.
Nguyen Van Dong, deputy director of Ha Noi's Department of Industry and Trade (DoIT) said there had been a supply shortage in recent years of several commodities such as cooking oil and high quality rice which were not produced in the city.
Thanks to the co-operation with neighbouring localities, Ha Noi had been able to satisfy consumer demands, he said.
He also said that as the administrative centre, Ha Noi must closely co-operate with neighbouring localities in order to develop supplies as well as the distribution system while ensuring growth in the entire Song Hong Delta Region.
Participants also said that the programme should be organised amongst businesses over the long term.
In the near future, Ha Noi would create more favourable conditions for key traders with significant experience, abundant capital, good warehouses and transportation and distribution systems to sign long-term contracts with farmers and manufacturers in other localities, Phu said.
Ha Noi's DoIT would also help manufacturers in other localities access the capital's market to more easily sell their products and set up their own distribution systems.
However, the co-operation faced several obstacles due to unstable supplies, bad weather and diseases, the seminar was told.
Because there was not an established wholesale market for foods and agriculture products in the region, trading had been done by small family-owned markets and small – and medium – sized enterprises. The region was also lacking a large corporation which could intervene to control fluctuations in the market, participants heard.
Vu Vinh Phu, chairman of the Ha Noi Supermarkets' Association, suggested that in order to enhance co-operation, provincial departments of Industry and Trade must guide their businesses to focus on core products while also providing more incentives to encourage companies to find markets in other provinces.
Source: VNS
