Pharma sector in focus at India-Vietnam business meet in Ho Chi Minh City

Ho Chi Minh:  As many as 39 Indian pharma companies connected with more than 50 Vietnamese counterparts, holding productive discussions during an ‘India-Vietnam Business-to-Business (B2B)’ meeting on the pharmaceutical industry organised in Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City on Monday.

Comprehensive discussions were held on the Indo-Vietnam business ties at the event that aimed at strengthening the pharmaceutical trade between India and Vietnam. The meeting was supported by the Consulate General of India in Ho Chi Minh, the Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council of India and the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh during his visit to India in July 2024 had called for stronger economic cooperation between both the nations, setting an ambitious target of $20 billion in bilateral trade. Speaking at a Vietnam-India Business Forum in New Delhi organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and the Embassy of Vietnam, the Vietnamese PM outlined his nation’s economic achievements and invited Indian businesses to invest in strategic sectors such as infrastructure, digital technology, and pharmaceuticals.

He had invited Indian businesses to invest more in Vietnam, particularly in semiconductors, science and technology, innovation, digital transformation, green hydrogen, pharmaceuticals, renewables, and biotechnology sectors. Vietnam currently sources 33 per cent of its pharmaceuticals from India and expressed interest in establishing a proper pharmaceutical ecosystem in the country to help protect the health and life of the Vietnamese people.

India and Vietnam have age-old historical and civilizational ties, which were elevated to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Vietnam in September 2016. India considers Vietnam a key pillar of its ‘Act East’ policy and an important partner in its Indo-Pacific vision.

–IANS