Positioning Vietnam’s Halal Industry: Insights from Diplomats and Experts
WVR - Despite numerous challenges, Vietnam, with its determination and immense potential in the trillion-dollar Halal market, is poised to soon become a rising star on the industry's global map, according to diplomats and experts.
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| Journey to Positioning Vietnam’s Halal: Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and participants at the Conference on promoting internal strength and enhancing international cooperation to promote the development of Vietnam's Halal industry, October 22, 2024. (Photo: Tuan Anh) |
In talking with the World and Vietnam Report, former Vietnamese Ambassador to Austria and former Director-General of the Middle East and Africa Department, under Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nguyen Trung Kien; Associate Professor Dr. Đinh Công Hoàng, Head of Middle East and West Asia Studies at the Institute for South Asian, West Asian, and African Studies; and Vietnamese Ambassador to Malaysia Dinh Ngoc Linh analyzed the barriers and challenges facing Vietnam’s Halal industry. They also discussed the current position of Vietnam in the Halal market and what needs to be done to achieve a breakthrough.
Struggles in the Early Stages
Associate Professor Dr. Dinh Cong Hoang emphasized that Vietnam possesses numerous comparative advantages in entering the Halal market and is not too late to join the game. However, the country faces significant challenges. According to him, the key challenges for Vietnam's Halal industry are as follows:
Firstly, the awareness of Halal standards among Vietnamese citizens and businesses remains relatively limited. This includes a lack of deep knowledge about Halal requirements, even among state management agencies. Businesses require significant guidance and support from relevant agencies to understand and meet the demands of this market.
Secondly, complex Halal certification process. Vietnam's Halal certification process is relatively complicated and not yet fully aligned with international standards. Additionally, there is no effective legal framework to support the development of this nascent Halal industry.
Thirdly, high development costs. The cost of developing the Halal industry poses a significant challenge for many businesses. This includes not only the expense of obtaining Halal certification but also the substantial investment required in specialized facilities, production lines, and safe raw materials that comply with Halal standards.
Forthly, lack of a Comprehensive Halal Ecosystem. Vietnam has yet to establish a complete Halal ecosystem, including production, services, and infrastructure. More importantly, without a skilled Halal workforce, the development of a Halal industry is unattainable. Building human capital for Halal is therefore a core priority that cannot be overlooked.
Lastly, fierce competition from experienced players.The global Halal market features many experienced players with decades-long development trajectories. Numerous countries have already achieved significant milestones in this field, making it challenging for Vietnam to compete with these established players in the near future.
Rolling Up the Sleeves to Act
From the perspective of Vietnam’s diplomatic missions, former Ambassador Nguyen Trung Kien emphasized that the biggest challenge in promoting the Halal industry lies in limited resources. This is especially significant as these missions must juggle multiple diplomatic responsibilities, necessitating prioritization.
However, Mr. Kien noted that each diplomatic mission can contribute to the Halal campaign in its unique way. For instance, the Vietnamese Embassy in Malaysia can act as a bridge connecting Halal certification centers and Vietnam's Halal market development agencies with their Malaysian counterparts.
Or the Vietnamese Embassy in Austria can assist Vietnamese businesses and Halal specialists in accessing the European market, engaging with European quality control agencies, and tapping into Europe’s Halal ecosystem. Additionally, the Embassy can liaise with UN agencies based in Vienna, such as the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), to facilitate the harmonization of Halal standards and enhance the capacity of Vietnam's Halal certification centers.
"For overseas diplomatic missions, our task now is not just to tell the story of our desire to develop the Halal industry but to take concrete actions," said Mr. Nguyễn Trung Kiên. "We must roll up our sleeves, involve relevant organizations, and negotiate with them to create mutually beneficial outcomes.
The scope of our economic diplomacy today is highly diverse and extremely urgent. Therefore, we need to carefully select the tasks, timing, and partners to achieve the highest efficiency."
Bold Innovations
Drawing from Malaysia's experience as a nation renowned for its world-class Halal standards, Ambassador Dinh Ngoc Linh has gained deeper insights into the challenges faced by Vietnam’s Halal industry."
Ambassador Linh acknowledged that while Vietnam has rapidly established a legal framework for Halal, it still lags behind many countries and lacks a Halal ecosystem to support businesses in exploring and accessing the market. According to the Ambassador, the Vietnamese Embassy in Malaysia, in collaboration with ministries and agencies such as the Ministry of Industry and Trade, must work to ensure a unified approach in promoting Vietnam’s Halal industry.
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| Journey to Positioning Vietnam’s Halal: Malaysia is one of the prominent countries in the Halal industry. (Photo: Halal Malaysia) |
“To overcome these challenges, I propose an idea for discussion: building a Halal ecosystem,” Ambassador Linh suggested. This ecosystem, he emphasized, should center on digitalization and adopt advanced technologies in Halal processes, such as product quality control using AI. This approach aims to create a modern Halal ecosystem, replacing some traditional standard procedures, and aligning with Vietnam’s focus on a digital and green economy.
“Malaysian businesses are very enthusiastic about Vietnam's proposals for cooperation. They themselves aspire to become a hub for Halal trade,” shared Ambassador Dinh Ngoc Linh.
“Therefore, promoting the benefits for Malaysian businesses participating in the development of Vietnam's Halal industry is a feasible approach that should be a focus in the near future,” he added.
Top 5 exporting countries
Currently, Vietnam is in the top 20 countries with the largest foreign trade in the world, striving to be in the top 30 countries with the world's leading GDP in the coming years. However, in the world Halal map, Vietnam is not in the top 20 or 30 leading exporting countries of the market. However, Associate Professor, Dr. Dinh Cong Hoang believes that with determination and great advantages, in the next 5-10 years, Vietnam can completely be in the "club" of the top five exporting countries to this market.
According to Associate Professor, Dr. Dinh Cong Hoang, to achieve the goal, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs plays a pioneering role in promoting the Halal "market wheels", on the basis of concretizing the Prime Minister's project on "Strengthening international cooperation to build and develop Vietnam's Halal industry by 2030".
In addition, Vietnam also needs to promote a national strategy in developing the Halal industry in a systematic and professional manner, gathering social resources to develop Halal comprehensively; clearly identifying target markets as well as target products, similar to Australia creating its own brands with lamb and beef, Korea choosing fashion and cosmetic products, and Thailand prioritizing Muslim tourism products. Vietnam also needs to find a way to optimize resources, approaching distant markets with technology.
"With the construction of a complete ecosystem, I believe that within the next five years, Vietnam can be in the top 5 leading countries in the Halal field, becoming a new star on the world Halal map", Associate Professor Dinh Cong Hoang expected.
Mr. Nguyen Trung Kien also shares that optimism. At the same time, with the Foreign Affairs sector and Vietnamese representative agencies abroad, he hopes to have more and more specific plans to realize the Halal vision at both bilateral and multilateral levels.
At the Conference "Promoting internal strength, strengthening international cooperation to promote the development of Vietnam's Halal industry" last October, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh affirmed that Vietnam considers Halal as a "golden opportunity", a new orientation in production activities, an "important economic cooperation content, a new pillar, a new driving force". Thus, there is no denying the hardships on the journey of the "ship" Halal Vietnam, but with consensus and determination, determination, clear and methodical orientation, the "ship" will certainly reach the finish line as expected.
