Exploiting the strengths of cooperation with Japanese partners

Recently, Can Tho City leaders received and worked with a delegation from the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) in Ho Chi Minh City to survey cooperation and investment opportunities in the city. At the meeting, the JETRO representative in Ho Chi Minh City highly appreciated Can Tho City's cooperation opportunities with foreign investors, including Japan. At the same time, he suggested to the city leaders potential areas of cooperation that the two sides could promote in the coming time.

Japanese enterprises experience Can Tho City's specialty products at the Japan - Mekong Delta Meeting Conference held in Can Tho City in August 2025.

Potential

At the Vietnam - Japan Forum 2025 organized by the University of Economics, Vietnam National University, Hanoi in collaboration with the Asia Future Association (AFA) in Hanoi on October 3 (Vietnam - Japan Forum 2025), the representative of the Central Policy and Strategy Committee emphasized that the comprehensive strategic partnership between Vietnam and Japan is built on the foundation of trust and mutually beneficial cooperation. In the context of a rapidly changing world, the relationship between the two countries is not only of economic significance, but also contributes to maintaining peace , stability and prosperity in the region.

Currently, Japan is Vietnam's fourth largest trading partner, the leading foreign direct investor and the largest ODA provider to Vietnam. The cooperation between the two countries is highly complementary: Vietnam has the advantage of a large market, abundant human resources and industrial development potential, while Japan has strengths in technology, capital, management and the need to diversify supply chains.

Mr. Vuong Quoc Nam, Vice Chairman of Can Tho City People's Committee, said that in addition to the industrial parks and clusters that have been and are being formed, Can Tho also has a deep-water seaport project and has available clean land funds in industrial parks. Along with that are investment attraction policies with the desire to strive for Can Tho City to become a national growth pole by 2030, playing the role of a driving force for development, spreading and leading the whole region. Vision to 2050, the city strives to become an ecological, modern urban area, rich in riverine identity, belonging to the group of fairly developed cities in Asia and a smart, livable urban area of ​​Vietnam. To realize this vision, the city especially values ​​the companionship and effective cooperation from international communities, organizations and partners.

Over the years, JETRO has always accompanied Can Tho City to call for investment from Japanese partners through investment promotion conferences in Ho Chi Minh City and Japan. According to JETRO, in recent years, Japanese enterprises have been very interested in Vietnamese startups and JETRO is also organizing programs to connect Japanese enterprises with Vietnamese startups.

Mr. Okabe Mitsutoshi, Chief Representative of JETRO in Ho Chi Minh City, said that Can Tho City has a lot of potential for cooperation, especially its strengths in high-tech agriculture, construction industry, processing industry, trade - services, logistics, green energy and renewable energy. These are the areas in which the city receives much attention from Japanese enterprises. JETRO always wants to promote this cooperation and commits to continue supporting the Can Tho government to convey the city's advantages to Japanese enterprises.

Promote cooperation

At the Vietnam - Japan Forum 2025, Mr. Ta Duc Minh, Vietnam Trade Counselor in Japan, said that FDI capital flows from Japan are of high quality and efficiency, which is considered a positive signal showing that Vietnam continues to be a safe and attractive destination for investors. The stable political environment, along with a wide network of free trade agreements such as CPTPP, RCEP and VJEPA, create great favorable conditions for bilateral cooperation. However, according to Mr. Ta Duc Minh, geopolitical challenges, technical barriers, limitations in deep processing and supply chain management still exist. Therefore, he proposed four new directions of cooperation including green transformation - circular economy, digital economy, infrastructure - logistics and high-quality agricultural products.

At the meeting with the leaders of Can Tho City, Mr. Okabe Mitsutoshi, Chief Representative of JETRO in Ho Chi Minh City, said that the purpose of the delegation's working trip is to survey the investment environment in the southern provinces and cities after the merger to provide information for Japanese enterprises that want to learn about the investment environment in Vietnam. After the working trip, JETRO in Ho Chi Minh City will synthesize and analyze information on the characteristics, potential, attractiveness, and business opportunities in the southern provinces and cities to provide to Japanese enterprises to support them in making investment decisions.

Since 2017, to support Japanese enterprises investing in Can Tho City, the city government has established the Japan Desk Office. The office provides information on the investment environment, projects, and fields that the city wants Japanese investors to invest in the locality. In addition, Can Tho City has also reserved a 30-hectare land area to establish the Vietnam - Japan Friendship Industrial Park for Japanese investors. Currently, the industrial park has completed site clearance and is ready to welcome investors to come and do business.

According to Mr. Vuong Quoc Nam, Vice Chairman of Can Tho City People's Committee, the city is in a breakthrough stage with great potential and development aspirations. The city respectfully invites JETRO and the Japanese business community to join in forming new value chains, logistics, technology and training centers, serving not only the Vietnamese market but also the Mekong region and Asia. The city government is committed to accompanying, being dedicated, responsible and effective. "If businesses consider Can Tho a long-term destination, we will consider them as long-term partners," Mr. Vuong Quoc Nam emphasized.

In the first 7 months of 2025, the total bilateral trade turnover between Vietnam and Japan reached nearly 29 billion USD, an increase of nearly 10% over the same period in 2024.

In Can Tho City, there are 125 FDI ​​projects with a total registered capital of 7.41 billion USD; of which Japanese investors have 13 projects with a registered capital of 1.65 billion USD.

Article and photos: NAM HUONG

Source: https://baocantho.com.vn/khai-thac-the-manh-hop-tac-voi-doi-tac-nhat-ban-a192489.html