On March 2^nd, 2023, at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Deputy Minister  Mr. Tran Thanh Nam had a meeting to welcome Mr. Jens Kremer- Executive Director of the German Agricultural Association (DLG), and members of the delegation. At the meeting, the Deputy Minister mentioned the good cooperation relationship between Vietnam and Germany in recent years in terms of economic and trade development in general, especially in the field of agriculture.

The Deputy Minister thanked the German Agricultural Association for coordinating with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Vietnam to host the Agritechnica event in August 2022 in Can Tho. The successful event has created a foundation for German and Vietnamese businesses to have more trade opportunities, and commercial and technical cooperation to help farmers in the region gain access to the new agricultural production technology that contributes to raising people's income.

Deputy Minister Mr. Tran Thanh Nam welcomed Mr. Jens Kremer - Executive Director of the German Agricultural Association (DLG)

The Vietnamese government had set a goal of becoming one of the 10 superpowers in the field of agriculture, so mechanization not only played an important role in farming but also in fisheries, livestock, and forestry to reduce production costs for farmers. Currently, the level of mechanization in the fisheries and fruit-growing sectors of Vietnam was still low, so strengthening cooperation in the field of mechanization was very necessary for Vietnam's agriculture.

The Deputy Minister proposed to Mr. Jens Kremer the idea of cooperation with Vietnam to build a service center for the mechanization of agricultural production in the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam. The purpose was to support small and medium-sized mechanical machinery and equipment suitable for production conditions, and built a service mechanism so that farmers could access and use mechanized services. And 1 more mechanization center would be opened for the Red River Delta region to focus on training, training in mechanization, and innovation.

Vietnam also asked the German side to consider supporting projects to build sustainable agricultural production chains for several key Vietnamese products such as rice, fruit trees, and aquatic products, building/finishing the supply chain so that these agricultural products could be consumed domestically and for export. At the same time, supported building capacity for Vietnam's agricultural extension system to advise agricultural cooperatives to operate effectively, including technology transfer, production organization, linkage, market, and product consumption. Through ODA projects, continued to introduce and disseminate innovations in the fields of agriculture and food, contributing to sustainable rural development in some rural areas of the Mekong Delta. 

Regarding forestry, Vietnam currently had a high forest coverage rate of about 42%, the afforestation area was more than 277,830 ha and the material area was quite rich, so it was necessary to focus on developing the wood processing industry instead of mainly exporting wooden pellets, and particle board. The forestry industry extremely needed technologies for early detection and early warning systems for forest fires, pests, and diseases, equipment for harvesting and preserving forest products, pruning trees, etc. If the two sides could coordinate to organize an Exhibition on agricultural and forestry equipment that would be very suitable, and the Vietnam National University of Forestry could host this event.

Mr. Jens Kremer - Executive Director of the German Agricultural Association (DLG) spoke at the meeting

Mr. Jens Kremer was very interested in the proposals of the Deputy Minister on cooperation between the two sides. He said: “Forest mechanization exhibition is very interesting because Vietnam has a great forestry export potential of nearly USD 14.1 billion in 2022. Therefore, if mechanization is combined, will increase the value of forestry. Besides, we will also have activities on spreading knowledge and technology at these fairs and exhibitions.”

The German Agricultural Association was ready to support Vietnam in developing new centers or expanding existing agricultural mechanization centers. Mr. Jens Kremer suggested that the two sides would discuss more the cooperation plan and jointly solve problems arising in the implementation process. Vietnam and Southeast Asia were places where German businesses were very interested, Vietnam had strengths in agriculture and Germany had the world's leading industrial strength, especially agricultural mechanization, we should take advantage and promote this opportunity to strengthen investment cooperation to further develop our strengths. The German Agricultural Association would be a reliable partner, accompanying Vietnam on the path of agricultural development.