Vietnam - Senegal strengthen trade connection: Opening the door for agricultural products and food

Vietnamese rice conquers Senegal market - Illustration photo

On the afternoon of May 14, the Vietnam Trade Office in Algeria and Senegal in coordination with the Dakar Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture organized the Vietnam - Senegal online trade conference.

According to Mr. Hoang Duc Nhuan, Commercial Counselor, Vietnam Trade Office in Algeria concurrently in Senegal, Senegal is a West African country with a stable political situation, open trade policies, and Dakar seaport as a transit point for goods for landlocked countries in the sub-region.

On the Senegalese side, a representative of the Dakar Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture affirmed that the annual trade event creates conditions for the private sectors of both sides to meet and cooperate on the basis of mutual benefit.

"We hope that in addition to trade, there will also be investment cooperation activities after today's event, to help businesses from both sides cooperate sustainably," said a representative of the Dakar Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture.

Rice, Vietnamese agricultural products conquer Senegal market

Data provided by the Vietnam Trade Office in Algeria shows that in the first four months of 2025, Vietnam's export turnover to Senegal reached 43.43 million USD, almost equal to the whole year of 2024 (43.91 million USD). Of which, rice accounted for an overwhelming proportion of 25.67 million USD, showing the great potential of this item in the West African country with a demand to import up to 1 million tons of rice/year, mostly 100% broken rice.

Besides rice, other products also had impressive growth: Pepper reached 6.8 million USD, vegetables and fruits 1.7 million USD... This affirms the competitiveness and suitability of Vietnamese agricultural products, food and consumer goods for the Senegalese market.

At the conference, many Vietnamese enterprises shared their desire to expand cooperation, especially with partners with potential and stable markets such as Senegal. A representative of Hapro - one of the largest trading corporations in Vietnam said that they wanted to find partners to import rice and agricultural products. Hapro has a standard rice milling factory in Dong Thap and is exporting to more than 70 international markets.

Vietnam Tea Joint Stock Corporation also expressed its desire to cooperate long-term with Senegalese enterprises in the field of exporting black tea and green tea. Meanwhile, Southern Star Agricultural Products Company - a start-up enterprise with organic dried fruit and vegetable products such as pennywort powder and perilla powder is also looking for opportunities to connect with distributors and retailers in Senegal.

From Senegal, the demand for importing Vietnamese goods is very diverse, including processed foods, school supplies, packaging, construction materials, household appliances, etc. Some businesses even want to become the official importer of goods from Vietnam for distribution in the West African region.

According to Mr. Hoang Duc Nhuan, to enhance cooperation, in addition to organizing trade conferences, it is necessary to promote more extensive promotional activities such as: Sending business delegations of the two countries to attend international fairs and exhibitions in each other's countries; increasing information exchange on market and investment needs; coordinating to verify partner information and supporting the resolution of trade disputes if they arise.

Notably, Vietnam and Senegal have signed many cooperation documents to create a legal foundation such as the Framework Agreement on Economic - Trade - Cultural - Scientific and Technical Cooperation and the Cooperation Agreement between the Chambers of Commerce and Industry of the two countries since 2012. This is a favorable condition for the two sides to bring the cooperative relationship to a new stage, more professional, in-depth and substantial.

Vu Phong

Source: https://baochinhphu.vn/viet-nam-senegal-tang-cuong-ket-noi-giao-thuong-mo-rong-canh-cua-cho-nong-san-thuc-pham-102250515091657989.htm