The National Brand Program has selected eligible companies every two years since 2008. What are criteria?
- Enterprises and products selected for the National Brand must meet 6 key criteria. The first is modern production processes and business administration, meeting the requirements and in accordance with the regulations of competent authorities. Secondly, the products are manufactured from domestic raw materials by applying the environmental- friendly and advanced technology, eligible for exporting and replacing imported products. Thirdly, product quality is ensured thanks to the advanced quality management system and is recognized in accordance with the current regulations. Fourthly, the design and the utilityis superior and creative. Fifthly, the product trademark is registered to protect intellectual property in Vietnam and is owned by enterprises and business organizations established in Vietnam. Sixthly, the business has a brand development strategy, a product and brand management apparatus and its products account for a large proportion in the domestic market and export turnover.
These are very high criteria. After four times of selection, only 190 enterprises and products have been qualified to be of National Brand. Specifically, 30 enterprises were selected in 2008, 43 enterprises in 2010, 54 enterprises in 2012 and 63 enterprises in 2014. In particular, many enterprises have been qualified time and again in  many years. It can be confirmed that enterprises and products achieving National Brand truly represent High Quality Vietnamese Goods.
Vietnam has signed many Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), so how do you evaluate the brand development of Vietnam?
- Product brand building  and promotion in a competitive market is an essential and increasingly important requirement forstrengthening enterprise value, improving business andproduction efficiency. In the context of deepening global integration, the conclusion of FTAs, Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations, brand development in a competitive markethas become even more urgent. National Brand development will improve export value of Vietnamese goods and services andensure the competition sustainability in the international market. National Brand helps businesses compete not only in the international market but also in the domestic one.

Foreign experts has recently said Vietnam’s national brand valuation in 2015 was only $ 140 billion, 19% lower than that in the previous year. What do you think about this result?
- International experts’ evaluation is based on the information collected by themselves, so sometimes it is not completely right to the actual situation of Vietnam. However, Vietnam has just involved in the economic integration process and built a socialist-oriented market economy for thirty years now, so the Vietnamese economy  is incomparable  with the economies with hundreds of years of market economy. Especially, the National Brand Program has just been approved by the government and assigned to the Ministry of Industry and Trade for implementation for 13 years; therefore, the Government’s limited ability to support domestic enterprises in the world market is inevitable.
Farm produce has been one of the main export items of Vietnam until now but  the building of an agricultural brand is no where on sight.   What are  the causesand what should we do?
- The Ministry of Industry and Trade is in charge of building and developing brand in general, including farm produce. However, Vietnamese agricultural production is still in low scale, making brand development difficult in general. In addition, domestic enterprises still lack knowledge of brand, so branding process is carried out and perfected at the same time. Enterprises operating in the agriculture sector are mainly small and medium-sized, so their financial capacity is not very good whereas the costs of advertising, consulting and branding services are very high, which makes many enterprises unable to implement the large-scale and long-term brand construction and promotion program.

In the coming time, what kind of support does the Ministry of Industry and Trade provide to enterprises?
- In the coming time, the Ministry will continue to implement more specific and practical activities. In particular, we will focus on improving the awareness unbrand construction and promotion in the domestic and globalmarket.  For example, for the agricultural products, the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency will favor  supporting agriculture and fisheries enterprises  in accessing market and improving competitiveness, especially building and promoting  brand. At the same time we will  collaborate with research agencies to help farm businesses to build and register intellectual property and give geographical indications for their produce. On the other hand, information sharing support and training activities will be organized to connect enterprises achieving Vietnam National Brand  to Vietnam’s commercial counsel offices in foreign countries in order to help them develop and promote their brands.
However, when the State’s resources  are still limited, the active participation of enterprises is a prerequisite for the National Brand Program to achieve goodresults. To carry out this task, enterprises determination is decisive. When the products are granted the National Brand, the enterprises will have chance to promote products and enhance exports to other markets, at the same time, the product consumption in the domestic market will increase, especially in combination with the “Vietnamese give priority to using made in Vietnam goods” campaign.
Thank you!
Assoc.Prof. Dr. Nguyen Quoc Thinh- Vietnam University of Commerce (Advisor of the National Brand Program): Strategic  orientation
about 80 countries that are carrying out their   National Brand Program. The National Brand is not just the Brand of a product but also represents prestige, quality, geographical indication, services, institutions, especially the value of indigenous culture.  National Brand is considered a certificate of origin and  quality issued by a country. To achieve this, businesses and localities need to establish a strategic orientation for the National Brand Program. It is necessary to evaluate the representative image of the country and enterprises, identify competitors and threats, detect development trends as well as determine strengths and weaknesses in each specific field.
Bui The Duc -Head of the Central Propaganda and Training Commission: “It is very difficult to promote Vietnamese goods without Communications”
The development of the National Band in Vietnam is still inadequate. The reason is the insufficient awareness and attention of all levels, sectors and enterprises.  Therefore, despite the integration into the world economy, many Vietnamese goods only penetrate the markets through middleman or after being processed by foreign brands.
So,  in order to build the National Brand, communications is key. Specificially, the media should disseminate about the need for a new vision and new social responsibility to the people and businesses in the context of deep international integration. At the same time, through Communication,  National Brand knowledge,  building and protection are raised and enhanced. Communication also  helps Vietnamese businesses raise awareness and strengthen capacity in building, promoting, developing and protecting trademarks. Through communication, the linkage and coordination among agencies, enterprises and associations would be strengthened. The enterprise its businessmen should be deeply aware that they are Vietnamese people and theyshould be responsible for creating high quality Vietnamese products.

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Do Kim Lang - Deputy Director of Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency, Ministry of Industry and Trade-: Build up the image of the country
The first goal of the National Brand Program is to build the image of Vietnam as a country of high reputation for diversified goods and  high quality services. The second goal is to improve the quality of domestic goods and services,  encourage processed products export and reduce the export raw material proportion; and finally, improve the awareness of distributors and consumers at home and abroad on high quality Vietnamese goods. in the end, the image of Vietnamese goods must be associated with quality, innovation and creativity,.

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Vuong Bich Thu - Communications and Brand Development Director of Eurowindow: Not just the brand of the business
After two consecutive qualification for the National Brand, Eurowindow has been more aware of the brand value. However, we recommend that besides the Vietnam Trade Promotion Agency (Ministry of Industry and Trade) and enterprises, other Ministries and branches should also jointly introduce mechanisms, policies and create playgrounds to connect enterprises together in the coming time. Moreover, enterprises achieving National Brand must be favored to have the opportunity to participate in the state projects, thereby encouraging enterprises to build the brand and reach out the world. In particular, to prevent counterfeit goods which currently affect the production and business of honest enterprises, the Vietnamese Government should have mechanisms, policies and more stringent penalty measures towards the infractors; deterring other enterprises from having similar intentions and making each Vietnamese aware of Honest Business.