Establishing logistics chains that connect producers with traders is an immediate imperative to enhance the efficiency of agro-forestry-aquatic product exports, as emphasised during a roundtable discussion held in HCM City on Monday.

Nguyễn Anh Phong, Deputy Director of the Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural Development, highlighted that while Việt Nam is a major exporter of agricultural products, the majority of its agricultural production occurs on a small scale and is dispersed, posing challenges in bulk procurement of farm produce. Furthermore, the elongated and narrow geographical shape of the country necessitates increased demand for logistics services to consolidate, preserve, and transport farm produce from primary production zones.

The trend of large-scale agricultural production and the increasing diversity of products have also boosted demand for logistics services in the agro-forestry-fishery sector, he noted, highlighting improvements in logistics infrastructure in recent years such as roads built to link with rural areas and ports, markets upgraded, and such services as transport, preservation, storage, classification, and packaging diversified.

However, Phong added, agricultural value chains in Việt Nam are still facing many logistics problems, including high expenses, infrastructure development unable to keep up with real demand, and limited service supplying capacity. In particular, logistics expenses currently account for 12 per cent of the production costs for aquatic products, 23 per cent of that for wood products, 29 per cent of fruits and vegetables’, and 30 per cent of rice’s. The expenses in Việt Nam are respectively 6 per cent, 12 per cent, and 300 per cent higher than those of Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore.

Besides, transport infrastructure has not met farm produce transport demand, agro-forestry-aquatic products have still been transported mainly by road, logistics centres have not been connected with one another, most logistics businesses are small and have not been connected in chains, and the logistics system for cross-border trade has yet to develop on par with its potential and real demand, he said.

Sharing the view on the growing importance of logistics to the improvement of added value and quality of Vietnamese agricultural products, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Trần Thanh Nam attributed current shortcomings partly to the shortages of a long-term strategy and support policies for agricultural logistics development.

To turn logistics into an impetus for agricultural development, it is necessary to form a comprehensive and effective logistics service system to help raise the quality, added value, and competitiveness of Vietnamese farm produce. Therefore, it is critical to build and implement a plan for the work by 2030 to tackle existing bottlenecks and facilitate agro-forestry-aquatic product exports, he continued.

Trần Chí Dũng, head of the technology and innovation division of the Vietnam Logistics Business Association, suggested implementing three projects: establishing a cross-border land logistics chain for agro-forestry-aquatic products that connects Việt Nam, Laos, Cambodia, and China; forming a logistics infrastructure chain that is combined with e-commerce and multimodal transport; and setting up an air logistics chain linking the ASEAN and Chinese markets.

He held that Việt Nam has seven economic regions with different production and infrastructure conditions as well as different demand for market connection. The design and building of regional logistics centres require thorough consideration and assessment to ensure projects are effective and meet development demand in the long term.

Viet Nam News