Mr. Nguyen Van Viet, Director of the Planning Department (Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) said that the GDP of the agriculture industry in 2022 reached 3.36%, which is the highest increase in recent years.
In 2022, the export of Vietnam’s agricultural, forestry, and fishery products reached a record high of 53.22 billion USD, up 9.3% compared to 2021, a trade surplus of over 8.5 billion USD, and accounting for nearly 76% of the trade surplus of the whole economy.
There are 7 products/product groups with a turnover of over 3 billion USD, including:
Particularly, the seafood industry has also set a new record when it is estimated that seafood exports reached nearly 11 billion USD.
Mr. Nguyen Van Viet believes that the export success of the agricultural sector in 2022 comes from the opening of the market. Many agricultural products and fruits have reached difficult markets. Especially, in 2022, Vietnam signed 4 protocols with China on exporting durian, banana, sweet potato, and edible bird's nest.
Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development said that the achievements of the agricultural sector are due to closely following and implementing the operation and management flexibly; adapting to the requirements of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the energy crisis, global inflation, and geopolitical instability.
Entering 2023, it is forecast that the economy will continue to face many difficulties and challenges. According to experts, Vietnam’s agricultural products exports in the coming time still have many challenges.
Specifically, exports will depend on the openness of the Chinese market. In addition, although new-generation free trade agreements have been implemented, Vietnam still faces legal barriers to protecting domestic goods in many markets, etc.
Agricultural products brought to the market are not only evaluated and received by price and quality, but also by factors such as impacts on the natural environment, biodiversity, greenhouse effect, climate change, etc.
Vietnam’s agricultural sector set growth targets such as the GDP growth rate of the whole industry reaching 3%; the total export turnover of agricultural, forestry, and fishery products reaching 54 billion USD. The target is set based on the current downtrend of domestic consumption and exports in Vietnam. For example, in October, growth was only 13%, while in previous years it grew by about 30%. However, in November, exports fell by 14% and in December by 15%.
Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien emphasizes that the agricultural industry will not only grow in quantity but will continue to restructure in the direction of going deeper into quality development in 2023. He pointed out that this issue should be implemented by raising the awareness and thinking of people to switch from agricultural production to agricultural economy, improve farming techniques associated with digital transformation, and switch from single-value production to multi-valued production.
One of the key tasks of Vietnam’s agriculture industry in 2023 is to open up the international market by taking advantage of new-generation FTAs, removing trade barriers in new markets, and overcoming technical barriers in the market. In addition, Deputy Minister Phung Duc Tien also noted that the entire agricultural industry focuses more on the domestic market, helping people to use more quality products, and ensuring food hygiene and safety.
Compiled by VietnamCredit
