On 21st April 20018, EuroCham delegation of Vice-Chairman Tomaso Andreatta and Chairman of Green Growth Sector Committee, Vice-Chairman Guy Balza, Board member Guru Mallikarjuna and representatives from Business Associations has attended the meeting between Ho Chi Minh City Leaders and FDI Enterprises at City Conference Hall in Ho Chi Minh City.

Representing EuroCham, Mr. Andreatta raised that 2018 is an important year. It is the 30th anniversary of the Law on Foreign Investment, the 20th anniversary of EuroCham and 10th edition of EuroCham Whitebook.
Briefing on 2017 and 2018 key activities, Mr. Andreatta mentioned the meeting with the city’s Chairman Nguyen Thanh Phong and relevant Departments to update on our activities in 2017, plans for 2018 as well as provide some recommendations from our Sector Committee members. EuroCham strengthened the cooperation and exchange with the city’s Investment and Trade Promotion Center (ITPC) and had a meeting with ITPC in January to discuss further cooperation in 2018, which for the moment is suffering from continuous postponements. The Chamber and Sector Committees successfully co-organised training with HCMC Department of Customs and a protocol of quarterly meetings and activities with the Customs Department has been agreed. EuroCham has worked with many relevant Departments to discuss many aspects and potential of the Smart City model. These exchanges have helped us to better understand the city’s goals, policies and investment plans. With our strong Sector Committees (including Green Growth, Information and Communication Technology, and Human Resources and Training, etc.) the Chamber iss keen to work further with city authorities to realise this goal. Given Ho Chi Minh City’s Smart City plans, EuroCham is eager to contribute to capacity building and education exchange to push forward smart, efficient and green development in the city. Since last year a GreenBook was issued to showcase European  green and efficient solutions to urban development and list the partners ready to work in Vietnam.
One of the important events of 2018 is also the expected ratification of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement. The EVFTA will raise the position of Vietnam within ASEAN as an production hub. European enterprises understand that Ho Chi Minh City plays a key role in developing the country’s economy and wealth. EuroCham welcomes Vietnamese leaders, especially from HCMC, to add their voice to ours. The tentative date for our trip to Brussels is 27th September 2018 and we would be happy to have HCMC leaders joining our delegation.

With the constant rebuilding of parts of the city, with the construction of Thu Thiem, the metro lines, the ring road, the financial and administrative effects of the new pilot Resolution 54, the People’s Committee of Ho Chi Minh City has the opportunity to make the city more livable, pleasant and self-supporting, and EuroCham and our companies together with the other FDI represented here today can help you in defining and implementing building standards for energy efficiency, in supporting the capillar diffusion of solar panels on every rooftop and the implementation of a rational cycle of waste to energy to make the city become a producer and not a consumer of energy, urban design and technological solutions for balanced life and more rational traffic, in the same way as European cities have already achieved, empowering the citizens and companies of all sizes to become urban entrepreneurs through the sharing of data on the city’s situation and needs.

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