The Canada Vietnam Trade Council hosted a "CPTPP: Vietnam" event on March 11, 2019 at the Ontario Investment and Trade Centre, where OWIT board member Julie Nguyen had the opportunity to have a fireside chat with The Honourable Mary Ng, Minister of Small Business and Export Promotion, on various topics from access to capital for Canadian SMEs to government support for underrepresented small business owners such as women, Indigenous people, and youth. Speakers included representatives from Global Affairs Canada; Ontario Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade; Export Development Canada (EDC); Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC); and Commercial Counsellor, Trade Office, Embassy of Vietnam in Canada.

The minister held that the Vietnam-Canada partnership is strong, expressing her hope to connect businesses of the two sides to promote two-way trade. She said the Canadian side can fund its enterprises’ activities to research the market and join trade fairs to seek business opportunities in Vietnam. Statistics showed that in 2018, Canada exported 1.02 billion CAD worth of goods to Vietnam, while importing 5.38 billion CAD worth of commodities from the country.

Jay Allen, deputy head of CPTPP negotiation team of Canada, highlighted the strengths of the Vietnamese market, including the strategic position in Southeast Asia, young population, and high GDP growth of more than 6 percent annually since 2014. Allen said cooperation opportunities between the two countries are abundant in agriculture, aquatic farming, infrastructure, green technology and ICT.

Meanwhile, Dr. Nguyen Dai Trang, Director of the Canada-Vietnam Trade Council, said since the CPTPP was ratified, Canadian firms have paid greater attention to Vietnam. She revealed that the council will introduce the Vietnamese market to Canadian businesses through the organisation of and participation in events, while also helping delegations study the Vietnamese market.