'Shared vision' driving Vietnam–New Zealand economic partnership

'Shared vision' driving Vietnam–New Zealand economic partnership

With shared goals, complementary industries, and a regional trade framework in place, Vietnam and New Zealand are well-positioned to enter a new era of inclusive and sustainable economic growth, writes Caroline Beresford, New Zealand Ambassador to Vietnam.

Over the years, Vietnam and New Zealand have developed a deeply integrated trade relationship, underpinned by shared values of economic openness, trade modernisation, and a mutual commitment to regional security. As the two countries have grown into comprehensive strategic partners, their alignment within a robust network of regional and bilateral free trade agreements has created fertile ground for expanding trade and investment.

Caroline Beresford, New Zealand Ambassador to Vietnam. Photo: Chi Cuong

Their joint participation in agreements such as the Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership and the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area has opened unprecedented opportunities for businesses from both nations to trade and invest under liberal and transparent frameworks. This alignment reflects not only geographic proximity but also a shared ambition for regional economic cooperation.

Despite these formal trade liberalisations, both governments acknowledge that addressing non-tariff barriers (NTBs) is critical to fully unlocking trade potential. Vietnam is well-positioned to play a leadership role in regional efforts to reduce NTBs, particularly in the facilitation of digital trade. Moving away from outdated, paper-based certification processes, both countries see value in collaborating on the development of digitised systems. This includes mutual recognition of standards, harmonised testing procedures, and more streamlined customs processes, all of which are expected to reduce trade friction and support cross-border efficiency.

New Zealand brings valuable experience in this area, which complements Vietnam’s current wave of institutional and regulatory reforms. Among Vietnam’s most ambitious initiatives is the proposed Free Trade Zone in Danang. This forward-looking policy is expected to serve as a strong catalyst for foreign direct investment (FDI), potentially transforming Vietnam into a hub for manufacturing and investment throughout Southeast Asia. Once operational, this zone is anticipated to draw interest from regional and global investors alike.

Attracting more FDI from New Zealand will depend largely on Vietnam’s continued efforts to simplify its business environment and ensure regulatory transparency. As bilateral market understanding improves, investment flows are expected to follow more naturally.

Agricultural trade is emerging as a key pillar of the Vietnam-New Zealand relationship. While New Zealand excels in temperate-climate products such as dairy, honey, and apples, it depends on Vietnam for tropical fruits and floriculture. Vietnamese products like mangoes, dragon fruit, and passion fruit are increasingly valued by New Zealand consumers. Expanding the export of these goods to New Zealand will require addressing existing market access challenges and eliminating technical barriers to trade.

One major step in this direction has been the VietFruits project, a long-running initiative funded by New Zealand. In its initial phase, the scheme supported Vietnamese smallholder farmers in producing export-quality dragon fruit. The second phase expanded into passion fruit production, building agricultural value chains while promoting Vietnam's high-quality tropical fruit products in foreign markets.

Looking ahead, bilateral cooperation is expected to broaden from traditional trade in goods to encompass knowledge exchange and technology transfer. There is growing interest among New Zealand companies to introduce innovations in smart agriculture, food safety systems, and digital certification to the Vietnamese market.

These contributions are expected to help Vietnam transition towards a modern, standards-aligned agricultural economy. The future of Vietnam-New Zealand relations hinges on their ability to jointly reduce trade frictions and explore sectoral synergies.

VIR