HCMC – The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has committed to supporting small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Vietnam so they can improve their capabilities and join regional and global supply chains.
On December 9, USAID coordinated with the HCMC Department of Industry and Trade and the HCMC Export Processing and Industrial Zones Authority (HEPZA) to organize a forum themed “Linkage and investment opportunities for SMEs”, the local media reported.
Robert Greenan, U.S. deputy consul general in HCMC, said USAID, through the LinkSME project, is cooperating closely with Vietnamese ministries and agencies as well as enterprise supporting organizations, such as the HCMC Center of Supporting Industries Development, to boost the connectivity between Vietnamese SMEs and other firms in supply chains.
Accessing information, enhancing connectivity and participating in supply chains will help Vietnamese SMEs recover after being hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. USAID will continue accompanying the Vietnamese Government and enterprise-supporting organizations to encourage the participation of local firms in supply chains, Greenan stressed.
He urged local firms to be more flexible to take advantage of opportunities from the global shift of supply chains, while trade promotion agencies should foster the connectivity between SMEs and large firms that lead supply chains.
At the forum, deputy director of the HCMC Department of Industry Nguyen Phuong Dong said the department had launched multiple programs for SMEs and supporting industries’ firms to boost the development of supporting industries.
Regarding policies for supporting industries in the city, Tran Viet Ha, head of HEPZA’s Investment Management Division, said the city had ceaselessly created land funds and developed infrastructure, especially three industrial parks for SMEs and supporting industries’ firms.
As for industrial parks and export processing zones with small land funds, HEPZA encouraged investors to build multistory factories to facilitate SMEs and supporting industries’ firms to develop their production and business, save costs and resources and use infrastructure effectively.
HEPZA will also intensify the connectivity between enterprises and diversify programs to support local SMEs and supporting industries’ firms in administrative procedures, capital access, preferential policies and consulting.
SMEs and supporting industries’ firms play an important role in Vietnam’s economic growth. However, they are struggling to seek customers and opportunities in new markets due to their limited ability, lack of connectivity with other markets and the impact of Covid-19.
