Hanoi (VNA) - Deputy Secretary for Foreign Affairs and Trade of New Zealand Vangelis Vitalis has expressed his belief in stronger trade ties between Vietnam and his country, saying that the two sides will expand their cooperation to other areas in the future.

During an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency, Vitalis spotlighted outcomes of the 8th meeting of the Vietnam-New Zealand Joint Trade and Economic Commission (JTEC) recently held in Hanoi, stressing that the two sides focused on practical issues that benefit their businesses and people.

According the Deputy Secretary, the two sides discussed customs procedures to make it easier for both sides' businesses to export goods to each country, during which they underlined the need for electronic certification and the establishment of a process to check each other in the field of agriculture.

He emphasised the two sides' commitment to realising the 2-billion- USD goal in two-way trade by 2024.

The completion of the market opening process for Vietnam's lemons and grapefruits, and New Zealand's squash and strawberries in late 2022 has demonstrated that effort, helping the two countries move closer to this goal, he said.

Vietnam and New Zealand are complementing each other in agriculture cooperation, he said, noting that the partnership has benefited both peooples because they can buy high-quality agricultural products at good prices.

He mentioned the possibility for New Zealand to export medical management software products to Vietnamese hospitals, adding that through the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area (AANZFTA), it is possible for Vietnamese engineers to work in New Zealand.

There will be many  opportunities for the two nations to promote multifaceted cooperation in the near future, thus further strengthening the bilateral relations, he went on.

According to Vitalis, education the most important field in bilateral relations, and the two sides should consider speeding up cooperation in this area.

New Zealand can provide training courses for Vietnam, while Vietnam can benefit from the Oceania nation’s high-quality education, he said.

Regarding investment in Vietnam, Vitalis said his country prioritises investment in high-quality sectors that can bring about positive changes such as health and education, thus making great contributions to Vietnam and also benefiting New Zealand itself.

Trade between Vietnam and New Zealand has grown strongly since the two countries established the comprehensive partnership in 2009, with an annual average growth rate of 14.2%.

Vietnam is now New Zealand's 13th largest trade partner. The two-way trade hit 1.2 billion USD in 2022, up 14% year-on-year.

The two sides set a goal to lift their two-way trade to 2 billion USD by 2024.

Established in 2006, JTEC is an important cooperation mechanism to  promote economic and trade cooperation between the two countries. 

During the 8th meeting, the two sides agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation in trade, investment and economy, including multilateral trade negotiations, agriculture and agribusiness, clean technology, development of agricultural supply chain, education, aviation and tourism./.