Korea-Vietnam, New Horizon for SME and Venture Cooperation... '1st SME and Venture Committee Meeting' Held

Ministry of SMEs and Startups Collaborates with Vietnam's Ministry of Planning and Investment
Discussing Cooperation Plans in SME and Venture Sectors and Organizing Business Exchange Events

Cooperation between small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and venture companies in Korea and Vietnam will be strengthened.

On the 28th, Oh Young-joo, Minister of SMEs and Startups, met with key ministers and vice ministers of government departments in Hanoi, Vietnam, urging cooperation in the SME and startup sectors and attention to Korean companies operating locally.

Oh Young-joo, Minister of SMEs and Startups. (Photo by Ministry of SMEs and Startups)

On this day, the 1st Korea-Vietnam SME and Startup Committee was held in the meeting room of the Vietnamese Ministry of Planning and Investment, attended by more than 120 participants including Nguyen Chi Dzung, Minister of Planning and Investment, officials from both governments’ departments, and SME representatives.

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the Vietnamese Ministry of Planning and Investment signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for cooperation in the SME and startup sectors in July, coinciding with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s visit to Korea. This committee was held for the first time as a concrete means to implement the MOU.

The Vietnamese Ministry of Planning and Investment is responsible for the country’s overall economic policy and development and investment plans. Recently, it established the National Innovation Center (NIC) as a subordinate organization, focusing on policies related to startups and innovation.

At this SME and Startup Committee, presentations were made on ▲the implementation plan of the cooperation MOU signed in July ▲cooperation matters in the Korea-Vietnam SME and startup sectors by Korea’s Korea Federation of SMEs and Korea Startup Forum, and Vietnam’s National Innovation Center and Vietnam Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (VINASME) ▲and case presentations of innovative SMEs and startups from both countries.

Following the Korea-Vietnam SME and Startup Committee, Minister Huynh Thanh Dat of the Ministry of Science and Technology and Minister Oh held a bilateral meeting to discuss cooperation measures between the two countries in the fields of startups and manufacturing innovation.

At this meeting, Minister Oh proposed cooperation in manufacturing innovation fields such as smart factories for improving productivity and digital transformation in small and medium manufacturing sites. The two ministries’ affiliated organizations, the Smart Manufacturing Innovation Promotion Group and the State Agency for Technology Innovation (SATI), exchanged practical opinions on cooperation plans including technology exchange, discovering collaboration models, and training specialized personnel for smart manufacturing.

Subsequently, Minister Oh held a bilateral meeting with Bui Thanh Son, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam, exchanging various opinions on overall cooperation in the SME and startup sectors. She requested the Vietnamese government’s active attention to Korean SMEs operating in Vietnam and continued discussions on future exchanges and cooperation in both government and private sectors.

Minister Oh stated, “We will continue to expand cooperation activities in the SME and startup sectors between the two governments to support the successful settlement of our SMEs and startups in Vietnam, and firmly establish a government hotline to promptly discuss any difficulties faced by our companies locally.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.