Two working groups completed and agreed on an Action Plan for 2026-2028, setting out cooperation priorities and implementation mechanisms to support bilateral initiatives.
Vietnam and Canada have agreed to focus on three priority areas and shift from the JEC mechanism to a more action-oriented and substantive cooperation phase.
One of the priority areas is diversifying trade and investment, making effective use of the CPTPP, supporting an open trading system and accelerating ASEAN-Canada FTA talks.
Another is expanding cooperation in energy, infrastructure and green growth.
The first priority area is diversifying trade and investment, making effective use of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), supporting an open trading system and accelerating negotiations on the ASEAN-Canada Free Trade Agreement (ACAFTA).
Trade between the two sides reached nearly $8.6 billion in 2025, maintaining strong growth since the CPTPP entered into force.
The second is strengthening cooperation in strategic industries like critical minerals, high technology, innovation, digital transformation and strategic supply chains.
And the third priority area is expanding cooperation in energy, infrastructure and green growth, including clean energy, liquefied natural gas, logistics, digital infrastructure and sustainable development, according to Vietnamese media reports.
The meeting was co-chaired by Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Phan Thi Thang and Canada’s Deputy Minister of Global Affairs Arun Thangaraj.
The fourth such meeting will be held in Vietnam in 2028.
On the sidelines of the meeting, the Trade Promotion Agency under Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade and Trade Facilitation Office Canada signed project documents for the Trade Support for Inclusive, Sustainable and Resilient Economic Growth (TRISEG) project in Vietnam for 2026-2030.
Under the arrangement, the Trade Promotion Agency will serve as TFO Canada’s sole strategic partner in Vietnam in carrying out the project.
The initiative aims at supporting Vietnamese small and medium enterprises, particularly women-led businesses, in enhancing production and export capacity in key agricultural product sectors.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)
