Asean

Jakarta (VNA) – The ASEAN Coordinating Committee on Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises ( ACCMSME ) recently launched ASEAN Access, a one-stop business information gateway for international-oriented firms to expand their market outreach within the ASEAN and beyond.

The launch took place in commemoration of the upcoming International MSME Day, celebrated every June 27 annually.

Deputy Secretary-General for ASEAN Economic Community Satvinder Singh welcomed the ASEAN Access as the latest addition to ASEAN’s trade facilitation support for businesses operating in the region.

He called on the national focal points to actively play their roles to promote, contribute contents, and secure quality service providers to ensure the ASEAN Access serves its purpose for the ASEAN business community.

In her remarks, Dato Ahmad, Chair of ACCMSME and Secretary-General of the Ministry of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives of Malaysia, noted that the launch of the ASEAN Access is timely, given the prevalent use of digital platforms among businesses as one of the adaptive measures employed to survive the pandemic.

With the tagline “Your Business Information Gateway to ASEAN and Beyond”, ASEAN Access sets to facilitate internationalisation efforts among MSMEs.

To help mitigate the risks of entering a new market, the portal is designed to connect businesses to service providers in areas of distribution, transportation and logistics, market research, and consultancy on intellectual properties, laws and regulations, among others.

The team behind the ASEAN Access, comprising the public and private sectors, would pool their resources to operationalise and provide services to the portal, including business matching services, which is scheduled to be available by the end of 2021.

The ASEAN Access contributes to the implementation of the ASEAN Strategic Action Plan for SME Development 2016 – 2025 which aims to create globally competitive MSMEs./.

VNA

Hanoi (VNS/VNA) – Hanoi’s Department of Agriculture and Rural Development has been supporting farmers, cooperatives, and enterprises to promote the consumption of farming products via modern distribution channels in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Deputy director of the department Nguyen Ngoc Son said that, to expand the agricultural product market, the department has strengthened the connection between Hanoi and other provinces and cities in consuming safe agricultural products.

Of which, it has cooperated with the municipal Department of Industry and Trade to support localities’ trade promotion  activities in the capital city to increase the consumption of agricultural and seafood products.

“Besides that, the department has also organised direct connection activities among manufacturers – distributors – consumers in the city, and launched the website https://chonhaminh.gov.vn to promote connections on the e-commerce platform,” Son said.

“Hanoi has also supported businesses in building and advertising their brands of agricultural products to promote consumption via supermarkets, food chains, restaurants, and hotels.”

Specifically, the department has connected with supermarket chains, such as Central Group, MM Mega Market, Vinmart and BRG, to consume more than 130 tonnes of Chi Linh chicken of Hai Duong province; 56,000 tonnes of mango and 98,000 tonnes of longan of Son La province; 12,000 tonnes of vegetables, fruits and seafood products of Hai Duong, Quang Ninh and Ha Giang provinces, and Vinh Chau purple onions of the Mekong Delta province of Soc Trang.

The first-ever livestream promoting products of Hanoi’s “One Commune, One Product” (OCOP) programme was held early this month by the Hanoi Coordination Office for New-style Rural Area Building together with the ASEAN Digital Conversion Research Institute (ASEAN Academy).

This event aimed to support stakeholders in the production, sale and marketing of OCOP products through digital technologies and e-commerce platforms, especially against the backdrop of COVID-19.

Nguyen Van Chi, standing deputy chief of the Coordination Office for the New Rural Development Programme in Hanoi, said: ” Hanoi considers livestreaming one of the effective solutions to promote online consumption of agricultural products, especially OCOP products and regional specialities.”

Dang Thi Cuoi, Director of the Cuoi Quy Hi-tech Organic Vegetable Cooperative in Dan Phuong district, Hanoi, said that due to the impact of the COVID-19, collective kitchens and restaurants must close while foreigners to Vietnam are also limited, so it is difficult for her cooperative to sell vegetables. However, with online trading channels, the cooperative has stability in vegetable consumption with an average volume of 200-300 kilos of vegetables per day.

According to Dao Thi Luong, Director of the Tam Anh Cooperative for Production and Trading of organic vegetables and fruits in Phu Xuyen district, Hanoi, with the support from the city Women’s Union, the cooperative has sold 200 kilos of vegetables every day. Along with that, the cooperative has been promoting online trading activities, especially on Facebook.

Director of the Hanoi Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Chu Phu My said that the department will continue to coordinate with the Hanoi Department of Industry and Trade and the Hanoi Trade and Investment Promotion Centre to promote the implementation of a programme on regional cooperation, and support consumption between Hanoi and other provinces and cities.

This programme includes support in introducing farming products and connecting Hanoi and other provinces and cities to promote the consumption of those products, especially products facing oversupply in harvest seasons.

It will support connections between domestic and joint venture enterprises with foreign partners abroad in the distribution and processing of those products, and encourage the businesses to develop e-commerce platforms and apply information technology in consumption activities./.

VNA