Rafael Frankel, director of Public Policy for Southeast Asia and South Asia at Meta Group, the owner of Facebook, in an interview with Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Wednesday, highly evaluated the Vietnamese market and stressed the group’s long-term presence in Vietnam.

“Meta’s commitment to the Vietnamese market is long-term. Over the past five years, our investment in Vietnam has increased gradually,” Frankel said.

Meta wants to not only expand but also deepen the relations with partners, including governmental agencies, small, medium and micro enterprises, as well as Vietnamese consumers.

The group also wanted to learn more about the environment and policies in Vietnam for the digital economy development and digital transformation.

For Meta, Vietnam is not just a market with a population of 100 million people but also a market with a strong connectivity and young and creative residents.

Meta has taken the initiative in cooperating with the Vietnamese Ministry of Information and Communications and contributing to Vietnam’s national strategy for digital transformation.

This year, Meta hopes to continue supporting the Ministry of Information and Communications in holding the Vietnam Digital Transformation Day and providing human resources with digital skills.

In 2022, Meta and the Ministry of Planning and Investment launched the Vietnam Innovation Challenge, an annual program to seek global innovative solutions to address Vietnam’s national issues. 

The topic of the 2022 program is digital transformation for enterprises in Vietnam, so it was expected to expedite Vietnam’s digital transformation and increase the competitiveness of more than 800,000 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) which makes up more than 98 percent of the total number of businesses in Vietnam.

The program will continue this year.

The digital economy has developed strongly over the past decade and will be a key topic for economic development forums of various countries in the coming time.

The Vietnamese government should issue policies to attract foreign investment in technology and help micro, small and medium firms to join global value chains.

Vietnamese tech firms wishing to enter the international market must rely on cross-border data flows. Therefore, a key point in discussions between Meta and the Vietnamese government is the building of an environment and policies to facilitate the digital economy in an open model.

In addition, Meta will this year bring a new program to promote Vietnam’s tourism and gastronomy, which will be broadcast on Facebook and other online platforms. 

Meta will invite creators from across Asia to different cities in Vietnam to participate in the series. 

This project will help boost the tourism sector in Vietnam.

As a global digital platform that facilitates the development of SMEs' business, Meta also has a long-term relationship with Vietnamese reputable partners such as the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) to organize training sessions under the theme “the companionship with SMEs in digital transformation.” 

To date, Meta has supported over 85,000 SMEs via the cooperation with VCCI and other partners. 

Meta has also supported the Ministry of Planning and Investment through training for 150 SMEs in the Mekong Delta localities, including Can Tho, Dong Thap, and surrounding areas in 2022. 

Meta looks forward to cooperating with the Ministry of Industry and Trade to promote training activities and support SMEs to further promote sales in the digital environment and conduct business in a methodical manner on Facebook platform.

According to Frankel, Vietnam is one of the leading countries in the world for business messaging, and has huge potential to grow. 

According to a study released by Meta and Boston Consulting Group in 2022, 73 percent of the surveyed Vietnamese consumers use business messaging to reach out to businesses. That’s why this year Meta will bring the Business Messaging Summit to Vietnam. 

Regarding its tax obligations, the Meta representative said the group is working closely with the General Department of Taxation to fulfill its tax obligations in Vietnam. 

Since the launch of the tax e-portal, Meta has efficiently declared and paid significant taxes in Vietnam, Frankel added.

Meta is one of the 52 large U.S. enterprises to visit Vietnam this week on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the bilateral relation establishment and 10 years of comprehensive partnership between Vietnam and the U.S.. 

The U.S. business delegation met with the Vietnamese prime minister, National Assembly chairman, and leaders of ministries and agencies to discuss important issues of mutual concern between the two countries. 

On that basis, the visit contributes to promoting bilateral economic and trade cooperation, while creating a premise for the development of the digital economy and bringing Vietnam to join global digital value chains.

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