Joint Communique of the 2nd Australia-Vietnam Economic Partnership Meeting

  • Joint communiqué with
  • His Excellency Dr Nguyen Chi Dung, Vietnamese Minister of Planning and Investment
  1. Australia’s Minister for Trade, Investment and Tourism, the Hon Dan Tehan MP, and the Vietnamese Minister of Planning and Investment, His Excellency Mr Nguyen Chi Dung, co-chaired the Second Australia-Vietnam Economic Partnership Meeting on 8 October 2021, hosted virtually by Australia, where they reiterated their mutual commitment to a strong and ambitious bilateral relationship.
  2. The Ministers acknowledged that the Australia-Vietnam Strategic Partnership and accompanying Plan of Action had provided a further boost to the realisation of the shared aim of becoming top ten trade partners and doubling investment.
  3. The Ministers were pleased to note the progress of the development of the Australia-Vietnam Enhanced Economic Engagement Strategy and looked forward to its launch this year.
  4. The Strategy will solidify the two countries’ shared commitment to trade liberalisation and economic connectivity.
  5. The Strategy recognises the enormous two-way business opportunities, spanning agriculture, energy and resources, manufacturing, tourism and hospitality, education and professional services, and technology and the digital economy.
  6. Recognising the economic challenges and uncertainty posed by COVID-19, the Strategy also includes a focus on economic recovery.
  7. Both Ministers reaffirmed their strong commitment to the rules-based multilateral trading system as embodied in the World Trade Organization (WTO). They committed to support necessary reform of the WTO to ensure that it can continue to address the opportunities and challenges of the 21st century, including in the lead up to this year’s Twelfth WTO Ministerial Conference.
  8. The Ministers discussed progress in promoting high quality, productive investment that was in line with both countries’ national interest.  Ministers welcomed the many Australian and Vietnamese corporations that were proactively pursuing investment projects in both countries.
  9. The Ministers discussed the important contribution that Australia-Vietnam development cooperation and broader economic partnership had made to supporting Vietnam’s reform agenda and economic growth, particularly in light of the global economic downturn caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
  10. Ministers noted the success of the Partnerships for Recovery Vietnam COVID-19 Development Response Plan in supporting a healthy, cohesive and resilient Vietnam. This includes Australia’s commitment to share approximately 5.2 million COVID-19 vaccine doses with Vietnam, of which over 700,000 have already been delivered.
  11. As part of the Economic Partnership Meeting, the Ministers announced the appointment of Business Champions to promote further two-way trade and investment links.
  12. The Business Champions are industry leaders who will promote trade and investment opportunities to business communities in Vietnam and Australia. These are honorary positions appointed for an initial one-year term.
  13. The inaugural Business Champions are:

Australia

  • Louise Adams, Chief Operating Officer, Aurecon.
  • Martin Bean CBE, former Vice-Chancellor and President, RMIT University.
  • Rob Gordon, CEO SunRice.

Vietnam

  • Hoang Cong Trang, CEO, TH Group.
  • Nguyen Manh Hung, Member of Board of Directors, Vietcombank.
  • Nguyen Thi Thao Nguyen, Deputy General Director, Hoa Phat Group.
  1. Both countries looked forward to the 2022 Economic Partnership Meeting, to be hosted by Vietnam.

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