A Viet Nam-Australia business forum is to take place next week to support enterprises of the two countries to seek cooperation opportunities and technology transfer in clean energy, hi-tech agriculture, and digital transformation applications.

The “Viet Nam-Australia Business Cooperation Forum: Technology Transfer and Business Opportunities between Innovation Ecosystems in Australia and Viet Nam” will be organised by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) in collaboration with the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST), University of Technology Sydney (UTS), Saigon Innovation Hub (SIHUB), and Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology on June 16.

It is supported by the Australia-Viet Nam Enhanced Economic Engagement Grant (AVEG) under which the Government of Australia is committed to providing close to US$2 million to assist small businesses in Viet Nam, starting mid-2021.

The forum, held both in-person in HCM City and on virtual platforms, expects to see the presence of leaders of Viet Nam and Australia as well as experts and business representatives from both sides.

Discussions will focus on the application of digital transformation in search and rescue, climate change response, health care, benefit-sharing scheme in energy projects, preservation of agricultural and aquatic products using solar power, agricultural product traceability using Blockchain, Internet of Things (IoT)-based smart farming solutions, biomethane production from agricultural residues, energy efficiency, and others.

Last November, Viet Nam and Australia adopted the Enhanced Economic Engagement Strategy, with the aim of becoming top-ten trading partners and doubling two-way investment.

According to the DFAT, bilateral trade expanded 8.6 per cent annually over the past two decades. In 2020, Australia’s investment into Viet Nam reached A$1.38 billion ($966 million), accounting for 0.51 per cent of the latter’s total FDI.

Australia provided ODA loans worth A$78.9 million to Viet Nam from 2020-21. — VNS