On Thursday, the Viet Nam Seaports Association (VPA) Annual Meeting 2017 took place at the Muong Thanh Grand Da Nang hotel.

Unloading cargo at the Tien Sa Port

In attendance at the event were representatives from VPA’s 69 member ports nationwide, national government agencies, the Ministry of Transport, the Viet Nam Maritime Administration (Vinamarine) and the Viet Nam National Shipping Lines (Vinalines), along with key stakeholders in the national maritime community.  Also present was Da Nang People’s Committee Vice Chairman Tran Van Mien.

In the spotlight at the meeting were discussions about port planning and its development orientations, along with the application of the public-private partnership (PPP) format in ensuring the sustainable development of ports and guaranteeing port security management.

The participants at the event also together discussed effective solutions to deal with seaport-related matters of deep concern.  Included were the current asynchronous development of seaports, navigation channels, road transport corridors and a series of logistics services, and the ineffective coordination between localities nationwide in boosting their port planning activities.

In particular, the meeting also featured effective measures to ensure transparency of the country’s port service market in a bid to fully tap the great development potential of seaports nationwide, and enhance the competitiveness of Vietnamese imports and exports.