Hanoi (VNA) - Vietnam’sforestry and aquatic product exports are expected to rake in 20.5 billion USD forthe agricultural sector in 2019.

The export of forestry products is hoped to bring home 10.5 billion USD, while aquaticproducts are expected to earn 10 billion USD in the year.

According to the Vietnam Administration ofForestry (VNFOREST) under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development(MARD), the forestry export value was 9.3 billion USD in 2018, up 15.9 percent year-on-year,accounting for over 23 percent of the total export revenue of the agriculturalsector.

Of the number, the export of wood and woodenproducts reached 8.78 billion USD, marking up 95 percent of the value.

Notably, the trade surplus of the forestry sector hit 6.99 billion USD, or 85percent of the agricultural sector’s trade surplus.

The US, Japan, the European Union (EU), China and the Republic of Korea remainedkey importers of Vietnamese forestry products, accounting for 87.33 percent ofthe total export turnover.

VNFOREST Deputy General Director Pham Van Dien said the sector targets a growthrate of between 5.5-6.0 percent in production value in 2019, while the export valueof wooden and forestry products will reach 10.5 billion USD, 1.2 billion USDhigher than that of 2018.

According to Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Ha Cong Tuan,Vietnam is likely to increase the output of material timber by 1.5 million cu.min 2019.

Meanwhile, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong saidVietnam and the EU officially signed the Voluntary PartnershipAgreement on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (VPA-FLEGT) on October 19, 2018 after six years ofnegotiation.

This was considered as a major turningpoint, contributing to forming a sustainable forestry economic sector, henoted.

Meanwhile, although facing many difficulties in dealing with the European Commission (EC)'s warning against illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, the fishery sector still aims to achieve anexport turnover of 10 billion USD in 2019.

According to Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phung DucTien, to realise this goal, the MARD and the Directorate of Fisheries need to strictlyperform the EC’s recommendations, and increase the value and promote the exportof tra fish, tuna, and shrimps, which brought high export turnover in 2018.

To increase the export, attention should be paid to improving the quality ofproducts and building the brand name, said Nguyen Hoai Nam, DeputyGeneral Secretary of the VietnamAssociation of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP).

However, Nam also pointed out challenges facing the sector in 2019 and next years as Europeanand American countries are applying import control programmes and increasing tradesafeguard measures.

To support domestic enterprises, the sector should focus on efforts to removethe EC’s “yellow card” warning against Vietnamese seafood, and sustainably developcatfish and brackish shrimp aquaculture using hi-technologies.-VNA