Friday February 18, 2022
In early February, the Team Leader of the European Union funded project - ARISE+ Viet Nam, Mr. Peter Bernhardt –had a meeting with the Resident Representative of Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) Vietnam Office - Mr. Axel Blaschke - to exchange their view on the implementation of the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement and about the important implications of Chapter 13 on Trade and Sustainable Development, in particular the upholding of levels of protection, international labour standards and agreements, the multilateral environmental agreements, climate change and biological diversity.
FES’s main focus regarding EVFTA is supporting the implementation of the sustainability chapter of the agreement, while ARISE+ VIET NAM has a technical focus on capacity building of the various beneficiaries such as the MOIT, MOF, MARD,… in the frame of SPS, TBT and the comprehensive implementation of the EU-Viet Nam FTA, through a rapid response facility.
Mr. Axel Blaschke - Resident Representative of FES Viet Nam Office
FES Vietnam in cooperation with Vietnamese and European partners has been intensively working on the EVFTA since the beginning and before signing and ratification of the agreement. Axel Blaschke shared his view on the crucial function of Chapter 13 of the EVFTA that helps maximizing the benefits of the EVFTA for the Viet Nam government and the private sector:“We already see the economic benefits of the EVFTA since it entered into force in 2020. The implementation of the Trade and Sustainability chapter is as important as the implementation of all other parts of the agreement to make it an effective tool for sustainable development in Vietnam.”
ARISE+ Viet Nam Project Team Leader – Mr. Peter Bernhardt
ARISE+ Viet Nam Team Leader – Mr. Peter Bernhardt welcomed the common understanding of the TSD chapter and that it is essential that this new generation FTA is accompanied by the EU through the EU flagship programme to enable a smooth implementation process. He mentioned that “all activities which the programme is rolling out currently are in extremely close cooperation with all government ministries and that the level of understanding in the Vietnam government is very high, so the ARISE+ Viet Nam activities are supporting to fine tune the process.”
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ARISE+ Viet Nam is an EU’s ongoing flagship trade related assistance programme (2020-2023) includes SPS, TBT, export promotion and the comprehensive implementation of the EVFTA through a rapid response facility.
For further information, please contact: ariseplusvietnam@dai.com
Related article: First meeting organised for Viet Nam DAG under Trade and Sustainable Development Chapter of EVFTA (Ministry of Industry and Trade)
