On Wednesday, May 31st 2023, the Board of Directors and Executive Director of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam along with member companies including CN, Dan On Foods and Pharmascience met with Acting Assistant Deputy Minister (Indo-Pacific), Global Affairs Canada - Mr. Weldon Epp during his visit to Ho Chi Minh City.
Weldon Epp was appointed Acting Assistant Deputy Minister (Indo-Pacific Branch) on January 16, 2023.
Prior to his appointment, from 2019 to 2023, Weldon was the Director General of the Northeast Asia Bureau at Global Affairs Canada. After joining the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade in 1996 as a Foreign Service officer, he served in the China and Mongolia Division, Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs Division, and Assignments Division.
Abroad, he served in Beijing as second secretary and vice-consul, in Taipei as director of general relations, in Jakarta as a political counsellor, and on short assignments in Geneva, Islamabad and Phnom Penh. He was the director of the Policy Research Division at Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, and most recently served as Consul General in Guangzhou and Shanghai.
Attending the meeting were the 2023 Board of Directors of CanCham Vietnam including (in alphabetical order by first name):
Mr. David Paillé - Board member, Head of Branch at CJ Legal Services Vietnam
Ms. Elizabeth Nguyen - Board member, General Director at St. John's Packaging
Ms. Happy Nguyen - Board member, General Director at GeoComply Vietnam
Mr. Matthew Mohr - Treasurer, CFO at Sun Life Vietnam
Ms. Venice Chan - Board member, Chief ... at Manulife
Ms. Winnie Lam - Board member, COO at Colliers
and Executive Director - Mr. Zach Herbers
Participating in the meeting with the Acting Assistant Deputy Minister were also representatives from the Consulate General of Canada in HCMC:
Managing Director of Saskatchewan Vietnam Office - Mr. Ha Nguyen
Senior Trade Commissioner of Consulate General of Canada - Ms. Jasmine Wahhab
The meeting consisted of a roundtable to provide feedback on key issues that Canadian businesses face in Vietnam, discuss Canada's Indo-Pacific Strategy implementation and CanCham's role as a key organization in developing connections and opportunities between Canada and Vietnam.
As Vietnam is Canada's largest ASEAN trading partner, with statistics in 2022 stating the two-way merchandise trade between Canada and Vietnam totaled $13.8 billion, up from $10.5 billion in 2021 and $8.9 billion in 2020, comprised mainly of imports from Vietnam (approximately 93% of the total). Canada’s merchandise exports to Vietnam in 2022 were approximately $901 million, up from $660 million in 2021.
The priority sectors in Vietnam for Canadian commercial interests are agriculture and agri-food, education, information and communication technologies, clean technology, aerospace, and life sciences. Hence, the Canadian government and Global Affairs Canada are doing their best to further develop Canada as an active and engaged partner to Vietnam, expanding trade and supply chain resilience, investment in sustainability & green future etc.
CanCham Vietnam looks forward to continuing to build an advocacy voice for its members and working closely with stakeholders in Canada and Vietnam to further extend its
More photos from the meeting:
The Canadian Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam
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