HCM CITY — Domestic companies have increased their overseas investments in the agro-forestry and aquaculture sectors, with about 150 ongoing projects valued at nearly US$2.5 billion.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, this figure accounts for more than 20 per cent of the total investment made by Vietnamese companies in foreign countries and territories.

It said that 28 per cent of the total investments are in Laos and 54 per cent in Cambodia, mostly for rubber cultivation and wood-processing plants.

Vietnamese companies are also investing in China, ASEAN-member countries and Africa, where Mozambique, Tanzania, Sudan, Mali and South Africa are developing the cultivation of seafood.

The Viet Nam Rubber Group, one of many investors pouring money into other countries, targets US$1 billion in overseas investment by 2015.

To date, the group has eight projects in Laos and 21 in Cambodia.

Companies in the agro-forestry and aquaculture sectors said it was profitable to invest overseas because of lower costs for land, taxes and human resources.

However, because many of the countries remain undeveloped, Vietnamese companies often encounter problems, such as weak legal systems and an insufficient number of skilled workers.

In addition, Viet Nam faces competition as many other countries like Thailand and China are exploiting these markets for the same advantages.

Despite these shortcomings, local companies said their investments abroad had brought profits that had allowed them to re-invest domesticcally. — VNS