Vietnam’s Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh and Greg Hands, Minister of State for Trade Policy in the Department for International Trade of the UK, on Thursday afternoon signed a letter of intent (LOI) to develop a National Trade Repository (NTR) for the Southeast Asian country.

The virtual signing ceremony took place on the sidelines of the 37th ASEAN Summit and related summits.

The repository will be linked to the ASEAN Trade Repository.

This is a UK government-funded project for Vietnam as part of the Global Trade Program under Prosperity Fund.

The NTR is expected to include, but not limited to, the following topics to be in line with the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA): tariff nomenclature; Most Favored Nation (MFN) tariffs, preferential tariffs offered under the ATIGA and other agreements of ASEAN with its dialogue partners; rules of origin; non-tariff measures; bational trade and customs laws and rules; procedures and documentary requirements; administrative rulings; best practices in trade facilitation; and lists of authorized traders.

Once completed, the repository is expected to facilitate free trade and open markets by providing businesses abroad and in Vietnam with easier access to regulations and trade facilitation information, enable greater investment and interaction with global value chains in creating jobs and prosperity, and help reduce poverty and promote gender equality.

The project will support the creation of a legal and governance structure as well as an operating model for inter-agency working between relevant agencies in Vietnam.

It will also provide comprehensive training series for government officials and companies to make the most of the NTR.

“Vietnam’s National Trade Repository, through the UK Prosperity Fund’s Global Trade Program, will provide invaluable support to businesses expediting trade in goods and services with Vietnam and ASEAN,” the British Embassy in Hanoi quoted Ambassador Gareth Ward as saying in a press release.

“This year, we celebrate the 10th anniversary of the UK-Vietnam Strategic Partnership Agreement, reflecting our ambition for a deep, broad, and meaningful relationship.

"A decade on, I’m delighted by the progress we have made, including tripling our bilateral trade and increasing the number of UK tourists visiting Vietnam."

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