At the online business connection seminar. Vietnam - Ivory Coast by the Trade Promotion Agency (Ministry of Industry and Trade) in collaboration with the Vietnamese Embassy in the Kingdom of Morocco (concurrently Ivory Coast) and the Ivory Coast Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Dang Thi Thu Ha, Vietnamese Ambassador to Morocco (concurrently Ivory Coast), said that Ivory Coast is one of the leading economies of West Africa that has established diplomatic relations with Vietnam. since 1975. With a population of approximately 26.5 million people, Ivory Coast is considered a market with strong commodity consumption, while product standards are not too strict. Vietnam's exports to Ivory Coast have been increasing in recent years, ranking first among French-speaking African markets. “Especially from May 30, 2019, the African Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) with the participation of 54 countries took effect, making Africa the largest free trade area in terms of number of countries. participating countries since the establishment of the World Trade Organization (WTO). This will be a favorable factor for Vietnamese goods to penetrate Ivory Coast and from here to other countries in Africa," emphasized Ms. Dang Thi Thu Ha. a lot of tips on how to make a living in Vietnam Vietnam imports many raw cashews from Ivory Coast in 2021 (Photo: IT). Sharing about the situation of economic and trade cooperation between Vietnam and Ivory Coast in recent years, Mr. Nguyen Phuc Nam, Deputy Director of the Asia-Africa Market Department (Ministry of Industry and Trade) said, The Ivory Sea is Vietnam's second largest trading partner in Africa (after South Africa), and Vietnam's fourth largest export market in this continent (after South Africa, Egypt and Ghana). In the period 2017-2021, on average, the total value of two-way import and export has reached more than 1 billion USD per year. In 2021, bilateral trade between the two countries recorded a strong recovery after a period of decline due to the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic, with a total turnover of nearly 1.26 billion USD, up 38.7% compared to the previous year. in 2020; in which Vietnam's exports reached 266.2 million USD, up 1.2% and imports reached 992.3 million USD, up 54%. In particular, rice is one of the important staple food items of many countries around the world, including Ivory Coast and Vietnam. In the first 6 months of 2022, Vietnam's rice export turnover reached 3.49 million tons with a value of 1.7 billion USD, up 15.4% in volume and 3.6% in turnover over the same period last year. 2021. “Vietnam is one of the five largest rice export partners to Ivory Coast, accounting for an average of 30%-40% of the country's total rice import value. Rice exports from Vietnam to Ivory Coast have increased by more than 106% in the last 5 years, from 207,000 tons in 2017 to more than 428,000 tons in 2021, with a value increase of 136.7% from $92 million last year. 2017 to more than 218 million USD in 2021," Nam cited. In recent years, raw cashew products are the raw materials that Vietnam has an annual import demand of up to 2 million tons, while Ivory Coast has the strength of being the largest producer and producer of cashew nuts in the world. gender. According to Mr. Dang Hoang Giang - General Secretary of the Vietnam Cashew Association, in general, in the first 7 months of the year, the number of exported and imported raw cashew nuts decreased compared to the same period in 2021. Importers and processing are tending to be slow to purchase raw materials, due to many reasons and difficulties, but in general, there is no correlation between the price of imported raw cashew nuts and the price of export kernels. Currently, the price of raw cashew nuts is at a very high level compared to the price of kernels being sold, so the price of dried cashews needs to be adjusted in the near future. At the Q&A session of the Workshop, the speakers and businesses of the two countries had the opportunity to exchange and share about supporting businesses to understand the market, find customers and partners, as well as share about other business opportunities. policies, legal regulations of the two countries in the matter of import and export of goods in the current context along with a number of issues that Ivory Coast businesses need to pay attention to when doing business in the Vietnamese market. a lot of tips on how to make a living in Vietnam Mr. Vu Ba Phu, Director of the Department of Trade Promotion, said that the Vietnam - Ivory Coast business connection webinar is one of the activities under the National Program on Trade Promotion in 2022. is a practical activity to support Vietnamese and Ivory Coast businesses to connect and exchange online about the possibility of cooperation and business, and proceed to direct transactions in the permitted conditions. The Trade Promotion Agency, as a state management agency in the field of trade promotion, investment and industrial development in Vietnam, has been making efforts to create and implement trade promotion and investment solutions. New investment based on information technology application platform to support Vietnamese businesses to maintain regular connections with potential foreign partners, businesses and investors to explore cooperation opportunities. Business Investment. “The Trade Promotion Agency is always ready to accompany, support and create favorable conditions for Ivory Coast businesses to expand business relations and export goods as well as import goods with Vietnamese enterprises. in the near future," Mr. Phu said.