Promoting Vietnam - Cambodia border trade to reach 20 billion USD

On September 13, in Tay Ninh, the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam, the People's Committee of Tay Ninh province coordinated with the Ministry of Commerce of Cambodia to organize the "Conference connecting production, distribution and logistics enterprises between Vietnam and Cambodia".

The conference was co-chaired by: Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Phan Thi Thang; Cambodian Deputy Secretary of State for Commerce Tith Rithipol; Vice Chairman of Tay Ninh Provincial People's Committee Nguyen Hong Thanh.

The conference took place in the context of rapidly expanding border trade between Vietnam and Cambodia; the need to complete infrastructure, improve logistics capacity and connect supply chains to take advantage of market opportunities is urgent; at the same time, it affirmed the determination to promote cooperation between Vietnam and Cambodia in implementing practical solutions, from macro policies to specific activities.

Vietnam's Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Phan Thi Thang (center) co-chaired the conference.

According to Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Phan Thi Thang, Vietnam and Cambodia are maintaining stable trade cooperation relations with high growth rates.

Many bilateral agreements have been signed, creating a legal framework and favorable conditions for border trade.

In 2024, two-way trade turnover will reach 10.1 billion USD (according to Vietnam's data), an increase of 17.5%. By July 2025, two-way trade turnover will exceed 7 billion USD, an increase of 16.3% over the same period; of which, Vietnam will export 3.2 billion USD (up 5.1%), import 3.8 billion USD (up 28.1%), reflecting a clear trend of trade deficit.

At the conference, representatives of the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment of Vietnam, the Border Guard Command, the Customs Department, a number of units under the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Vietnam, leaders of the Department of Commerce of Tbong Khmum province (Cambodia); along with a number of associations and typical enterprises of the two countries reported, discussed, shared practices and proposed solutions to promote the development of Vietnam-Cambodia border trade infrastructure to build a chain of production, distribution and logistics enterprises.

Discussions ranged from macro policies to specific local and business issues. Many delegates emphasized that the market potential between Vietnam and Cambodia is still huge but is being hindered by a lack of synchronous logistics infrastructure, limited distribution services and differences in technical standards.

To overcome this, specific solutions have been proposed, notably increasing the synchronization of technical standards; investing in developing cold chains and warehouse systems; expanding electronic customs clearance mechanisms; and at the same time, building cross-border economic cooperation zones at the Moc Bai-Bavet (Tay Ninh-Svay Rieng), Le Thanh-Oyadav (Gia Lai-Rattanakiri), and Ha Tien-Prek Chak (An Giang-Kampot) border gates.

These cooperation zones will focus on developing processing industry, trade, services and logistics, thereby contributing to forming common growth poles, creating a driving force to promote sustainable development of bilateral trade.

According to delegates, connecting manufacturing enterprises, distribution systems and logistics services is a decisive factor in transforming border trade potential into actual economic value.

Delegates visit a booth within the conference.

Notably, in order to create a breakthrough in Vietnam-Cambodia trade cooperation, the Ministry of Industry and Trade issued Decision No. 2162/QD-BCT dated July 25, 2025, setting the target of bringing bilateral trade turnover to 20 billion USD by 2030.

In the immediate future, by 2027, strive for 100% of warehouses at border gates to meet the demand for goods storage; of which, at least 80% of warehouses provide full-package logistics services, effectively connecting with regional and international supply chains.

According to Vietnam's Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Phan Thi Thang, Vietnam and Cambodia are neighboring countries with a strategic location, with a land border of about 1,137km long, passing through 8 provinces of Vietnam and 9 provinces of Cambodia, with 50 border gates of all kinds (11 international, 11 main, 28 secondary and 11 openings).

In recent times, Vietnam and Cambodia have signed bilateral cooperation agreements, creating a legal corridor and favorable conditions for border trade between the two countries.

The implementation of the above agreements has contributed to promoting the development of border gate infrastructure, border markets, warehouses and logistics services in border provinces, shortening customs clearance time and improving supply chain connectivity capacity.

“In order to promote Vietnam-Cambodia border trade activities to achieve the set growth target, contributing to bringing bilateral trade turnover to 20 billion USD by 2030, we need to take stronger actions. We believe that with the intelligence, enthusiasm and valuable contributions from the delegates, what we discussed at this conference and many initiatives and projects that will be implemented in the coming time will contribute to bringing practical benefits to businesses and people of the two countries, affirming the friendly neighborly relationship and sustainable cooperation between Vietnam and Cambodia,” emphasized Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Phan Thi Thang.

nhandan.vn

Source: https://baolaocai.vn/thuc-day-thuong-mai-bien-gioi-viet-nam-campuchia-dat-20-ty-usd-post882027.html