Japanese enterprises suggested the Vietnamese government further simplify investment procedures, specifically the process of obtaining investment, construction and hazardous waste treatment licenses, to facilitate investment from Japan.

Overview of the meeting. Photo: MPI.

The issue was raised at a conference held between Vietnam’s government agencies and major Japanese firms in Vietnam, including Hitachi Asia Vietnam, TEPCO Power Grid, JFE Engineering, MUFG Bank, JERA, among others, on August 20, with the aim of addressing issues that are directly related to Vietnam’s business environment and affect Japanese businesses’ decisions to expand operations in the country.

Director of the Ministry of Planning and Investment’s Foreign Investment Agency Do Nhat Hoang. Photo: MPI.

Director of the Ministry of Planning and Investment’s Foreign Investment Agency Do Nhat Hoang considered the conference an important channel to help the Japanese business community better understand Vietnam’s investment policies and business environment, and for the Vietnamese government to identify its shortcomings to continue attracting high quality foreign direct investment (FDI).

Takeshi Masuyama, country head of MUFG Bank in Vietnam, said the bank would continue to cooperate with Hanoi-based Vietinbank to promote Japanese investment into Vietnam.

Country Head of MUFG Bank in Vietnam Takeshi Masuyama. Photo: MPI.

MUFG Bank is currently Vietinbank’s second largest shareholder with a 19.7% stake, behind the Vietnamese central bank with a 64.46% stake.

Vietnam remains a safe and attractive investment destination in the eyes of foreign investors. Year to July 20, 1,620 new foreign-invested projects were approved with total registered capital of US$9.46 billion, up 14.4% in capital year-on-year, while 619 existing projects were injected an additional US$4.7 billion, up 37% in capital.  

The country is home to 33,000 foreign projects with registered capital of a combined US$380 billion from 137 countries and territories. In this regard, Japan is the second largest investor with over 4,500 projects worth US$60 billion.

A recent survey from the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) conducted at the end of 2019 on 3,500 Japanese firms revealed over 40% were considering expanding operations in Vietnam in the next three years, up 5.5 percentage points from a year earlier.

The JETRO in early July also released a list of 30 Japanese firms that are poised to receive subsidies from its government to move production facilities out of China, of them 15 eye Vietnam as a favorite destination.