The conference drew 500 deputies from 12 provinces and cities and over 130 businesses. — VNS Photo Cong Thanh

DA NANG (Biz Hub) — Viet Nam has targeted building more distribution centres for locally made consumer goods in 64 provinces and cities by 2020 to boost the consumption of these goods.

Vice Minister of Trade and Industry Ho Thi Kim Thoa made this announcement at a conference on Goods and Service Supply and Demand Matching in the Central and Central Highlands region in Da Nang yesterday.

"This is the largest event to link businesses with other businesses, buyers and sellers and markets with other markets. The conference aims to connect various businesses from manufacturing, agriculture, trade, service and support industries to expand the market for made-in-Viet Nam goods," Thoa said.

"The conference is part of the ‘made-in-Viet Nam goods recognition' week under the programme of 'Vietnamese use Vietnamese products.' It's expected that 80 per cent of 64 provinces and cities will see an increase in sales of Vietnamese goods by 2020," she said.

The conference, which drew the participation of more than 500 participants from 129 businesses in 12 provinces and cities in the Central and Central Highlands region, saw 20 Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) on business matching and sales of products in the region.

Representatives from the trade and industry departments of Ha Noi, HCM City, Can Tho, Hai Phong and Da Nang also signed an agreement on trade, service and promotion.

Nguyen Huynh Phu Lam, director of Classic Coffee Company from Gia Lai Province, said the event offered a good opportunity to find customers and partners.

"We are seeking partners to improve the quality of coffee beans in Gia Lai Province and to build up our coffee brand in the province and the Central Highlands region," Lam said.

Businesses introduce their products at a conference on Goods and Service Supply and Demand Matching in the central and Central Highlands region in Da Nang on September 29. — VNS Photo Cong Thanh

He said Vietnamese coffee drinkers were almost unable to recognise good-quality coffee in Viet Nam, noting that his company rarely met buyers at such conferences where they promote their high-quality coffee.

Lam said his company collects 150 tonnes of coffee from farmers in Gia Lai Province for production and acts as a broker for the sale of 1,200 tonnes of coffee per year for the farmers.

Le Thi Anh Nguyet, manager of HCM City-based Tram Anh manufacturing and trading service company, said her company had inked a co-operation agreement with Nam O village in Da Nang to produce traditional home-made fish sauce last year.

She said locally made fish sauce, with a recipe dating back to the 19th century, has been seeking a way to enter supermarkets nationwide.

"We produce 9,000 litres of premium fish sauce in co-operation with Nam O village, but the product is only available at the local market or in specialty shops in Da Nang," she said.

Deputy Director of Da Nang City's Industry and Trade Department Lu Bang said agreements on the sale of products among provinces and cities in the Central and Central Highlands region had not reached their full potential.

"The region, with 15 cities and provinces, has a large market, comprising a third of the country's population and producing 11 per cent growth annually. The region earned a total of US$19 billion through the retail and service industries and $6.1 billion for exports in the first nine months of this year," Bang said.

Bang also hoped that more conferences would be held to forge links between businesses and encourage matching efforts between buyers and sellers.

Three years ago, Da Nang and Lam Dong signed an agreement to supply 800 tonnes of vegetables from Lam Dong to 50 supermarkets and trading centres in Da Nang.

The central city, which is situated at the end of the East-West Economic Corridor, linking Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Viet Nam, will help boost the sale of goods and encourage exports from provinces in the Central and Central Highlands region. — VNS