The 2017 Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) Summit is a crucial opportunity for businesses throughout Central Viet Nam to seek their trade partners and export markets as representatives of foreign firms flock to the business forums at APEC Economic Leaders’ Week (AELW) in Da Nang from 6-11 November.

Drawcard: Da Nang's tourism property will be an area of focus for investors from the 21 APEC economies when the city will host the APEC summit week from 6-11 November . — VNS Photo Cong Thanh

A total of about 2,000 CEOs will attend the CEO Summit in the city.  The Vice Chairman of the city’s Small and Medium-sized Enterprises’ Association (DANASME), Mr Nguyen Van Ly, told Viet Nam News that this would represent a rare opportunity for local firms to show off their capacity.

The city is now home to a total of 21,000 businesses, of which 98% are SMEs and super-small businesses with registered capital of 90 trillion VND (3.9 billion USD) in total.  They together contribute 43% to the city’s Gross Regional Domestic Product (GRDP), and employ 60% of the city’s labour force.  Eighty per cent of the city businesses operate in trade, service, hospitality, tourism property and retails, making international connections especially important.

Da Nang has topped the National Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) rankings for the past decade.  To date, the city has attracted 408 domestic projects worth 4.5 billion USD in total, and 525 FDI ones totalling 3 billion USD.

Tourism real estate remains an investment magnet in this city, attracting 25 FDI projects worth 1.8 billion USD. 

“We have been struggling in seeking a larger export market and long-term strategic partners in services, tourism and real estates. For us, building connections with giant foreign partners is nearly impossible,” Mr Ly said. “Our small and medium enterprise community faces limited funds and technology, as well as little international exposure.  That’s why AELW is very important to the city’s business community.”

Ly said he hoped that local businesses would be able to share experiences with CEOs from some of the world’s top firms and join global production processes.

He said the association had received a list of top 100 enterprises in the APEC’s CEO Summit for business matching. Local businesses are particularly expected to connect with international firms operating in the fields of finance, hi-tech and human resources.

Tourism boom

The 2017 APEC Summit was a ‘diamond’ chance for Da Nang’s tourism industry in hosting the world’s top economic leaders and CEOs, as well as officials from 21 member economies and partners, said the city’s Tourism Association, Mr Huynh Tan Vinh.

Mr Vinh said the city received an award for Asia’s Leading Festival and Event at the World Travel Awards ceremony for tourism last year.  He said that hosting AELW would confirm the city’s tourism prowess.

Quality check: A worker inspects the quality of rubber tyres at a factory in Da Nang. — VNS Photo Cong Thanh

He said Da Nang was also the first city in Viet Nam and the South-east Asian region to host a leg of the Clipper 2015-16 Round the World Yacht Race last year.  Because of that event, the symbol of the Marble Mountains Tourist Area and the city’s tourism logo, Fantastic City, travelled around the globe.

“The APEC summit week is a great promotional opportunity for the city’s tourism industry,” Mr Vinh said.

“We’ll be able to offer international observers an introduction to the city through the first-hand experiences of 10,000 delegates, 2,000 CEOs and 3,000 journalists at this large-scale international event.”

He said the city had received huge investment from the national government and private sectors in infrastructure projects, including airport expansion—a new terminal could host about 14 million tourists per year—convention halls, accommodations, human resource training and decoration projects.

“The city has developed a total of 600 hotels and resorts together providing 26,000 rooms in total for hosting 15 million tourists per year in 2030,” Mr Vinh said.

He said Da Nang had been designed to serve as a favourite destination for MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conference and Exhibition) in the central region, and Viet Nam as a whole.

Yeon In Jung, the CEO and general director of South Korea’s Doosan Heavy Industries Viet Nam (Doosan Vina) said the APEC summit was an excellent opportunity for Viet Nam to showcase its advantages and encourage firms to invest and open a branch or subsidiary in the country like Doosan did in 1995.

He said the APEC summit would provide long-term benefit for Viet Nam, its people and businesses; the exposure that Viet Nam would receive is tremendous.

“The VIP’s that are coming will be able to see firsthand what companies like Doosan have done here and they’ll be able to easily see the possibilities for investment.  Another side effect will be the millions of people in the leaders home nations who will also be shown what it is like to visit and do business in Viet Nam by their media, so the benefits from APEC will last long after the event and have a knock-on effect that will bring lasting value to Viet Nam for many years to come,” he said.

“I think all the factors for success are here and good businessmen are sure to recognise that,” he continued. “They will ‘Carpe Diem’ or seize the day and take a serious look at Viet Nam.”

(Source: VNS/ DA NANG Today)