VINACHEM

Speaking at the meeting, Do Nhat Hoang, head of the Ministry of Planning and Investment's Foreign Investment Department, said he highly valued Japanese investment in Viet Nam, particularly investments from Aichi.

Major companies from Aichi with investments in Viet Nam include Toyota, Honda, Suzuki, Yamaha, and Kawaii.

Hoang said he expected not only large enterprises but also small and medium sized enterprises to continue to increase investment in Viet Nam.

He said "projects would be revoked and passed to other investors if they are not implemented within 12 months."

The Ministry of Planning and Investment has set up Aichi Support Desk (ASD) to assist companies from Aichi Province with investment advice and act as a bridge between the government and potential Aichi investors.

Nguyen Trong Hanh, deputy head of the HCM City Tax Department said Viet Nam has completed tax policies to facilitate the flow of investment from foreign investors, including Aichi businesses.

Le Xuan Thanh, deputy head of the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs' Labour and Salary Department pointed out labour problems in the country including a shortage of skilled workers.

"We should push up investment in the quality of human resources, specifically, there's need to increase the rate of trained labourers to 50 per cent [from 37 per cent] to meet the international market's demand." he said

Another problem was labour shortages in industrial parks in provinces like Binh Duong and Dong Nai. Low salaries were the big factor in this, he argued saying the average salary of garment workers was only VND1.7-1.8 million (US$89.4-94.7) per month so it needs to be increased.

Hanh advised the Japanese companies to provide good meals, salaries and workers' rights and benefits to reduce the risk of strikes.

He added that the government was developing a programme to make workers more aware of the labour laws and policies.

Aichi Province is one of the biggest industrial and economic centres in Japan's Central region. There are 70 Aichi businesses operating in Viet Nam, including 33 businesses in the South and 40 businesses in the Northern region.

Currently 39 countries and territories have investment projects in Viet Nam. Japan ranks third with 43 projects – total capital of $1.22 billion, amounting to14.5 per cent of the total.

(Source: VNS)