At the 36th annual general meeting of the India-Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IVCCI) in Mumbai, Vietnamese and Indian delegates put forward a range of proposals to deepen bilateral economic, trade, and investment cooperation. Among the key proposals were expanding IVCCI’s operations nationwide and moving toward the establishment of a Viet Nam-India Business Council.

On September 29, the IVCCI’s 36th annual general meeting and a business networking program with a high-level Vietnamese business delegation were held at the headquarters of the IMC Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Mumbai, as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen connections between the business communities of the two countries.

The Vietnamese side was represented online from New Delhi by Ambassador of Viet Nam to India Trinh Minh Manh, along with Consul General of Viet Nam in Mumbai Le Quang Bien, Commercial Counsellor and Head of the Viet Nam Trade Office in India Bui Trung Thuong, and a Vietnamese business delegation organized by the Viet Nam E-commerce Association (VECOM).

The Indian side included Maharashtra Minister of Protocol and Marketing Jayakumar Rawal; President of the IMC Chamber of Commerce and Industry Mahendra Kumar Chouhan; IVCCI President Ajoykaant Ruia; leaders of IVCCI and IMC; and a large number of Indian businesses.

The Vietnamese delegation comprised 13 representatives from VECOM and businesses operating in e-commerce, technology, retail solutions, and cross-border business development, including SAPO, Dandelion Vietnam (Droppii), JS Evolution, and HGI Investment.

Ambassador Trinh Minh Manh: Turning strong political ties into concrete economic results

Addressing the meeting online, Ambassador Trinh Minh Manh highlighted IVCCI’s role over more than three decades as one of the long-standing bridges connecting the Vietnamese and Indian business communities.

He said bilateral relations were entering a new phase following the State visit to India by Party General Secretary and State President To Lam from May 5-7, 2026. During the visit, the two countries elevated their relationship to an Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and agreed to set a target of raising bilateral trade to USD 25 billion by 2030.

According to the ambassador, the priority in the new phase is to translate strong political and diplomatic ties into concrete economic, trade, investment, and technological outcomes, while expanding cooperation into emerging areas such as the digital economy, artificial intelligence, semiconductors, clean energy, logistics, data centers, and research and development.

This direction is also consistent with the message delivered by Party General Secretary and State President To Lam at the Viet Nam-India Business Forum in Mumbai in May 2026. He emphasized that bilateral cooperation should be aligned with new global growth trends, including digital technology, AI, semiconductors, and the green transition, while encouraging businesses from both countries to take a more proactive approach to investment, technology transfer, and market expansion.

Ambassador Trinh Minh Manh called on business organizations in both countries, including IVCCI, to strengthen regular two-way business delegations, with a target of organizing at least one or two sector-focused delegations each year in areas such as technology and the digital economy, finance and fintech, pharmaceuticals, electric vehicles and clean energy, agriculture and food processing, logistics, and supply chains.

Mumbai and Maharashtra becoming increasingly important in cooperation with Viet Nam

Addressing the meeting, Consul General of Viet Nam in Mumbai Le Quang Bien briefed the business community on new developments in Viet Nam-India relations, particularly those directly related to Maharashtra and Mumbai.

He emphasized that Party General Secretary and State President To Lam’s visit to Mumbai in May had provided fresh momentum for relations between Viet Nam and Maharashtra, one of India’s leading economic, financial, and commercial centers.

During the visit, the Party General Secretary and State President held talks with Maharashtra’s leaders. The two sides agreed to promote cooperation in urban development, finance, innovation, logistics, seaports, and infrastructure connectivity, while strengthening ties between their business communities.

A significant milestone was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding establishing friendship and cooperation between Ho Chi Minh City and Mumbai. The agreement provides an official framework for the two major economic centers to enhance cooperation and share experience in urban management, economic development, and areas of mutual interest.

Notably, at the Viet Nam-India Business Forum in Mumbai on May 7, in the presence of Party General Secretary and State President To Lam and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, businesses from the two countries exchanged 27 cooperation agreements covering areas including trade promotion, aviation, tourism, logistics, airport infrastructure, artificial intelligence, and electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

According to Consul General Le Quang Bien, these outcomes demonstrate that Mumbai and Maharashtra are becoming increasingly important hubs for Viet Nam-India economic cooperation, particularly in finance, technology, logistics, infrastructure, trade, and investment.

Commercial Counsellor Bui Trung Thuong: IVCCI should expand nationwide

One of the key issues raised at the meeting was a speech by Commercial Counsellor and Head of the Viet Nam Trade Office in India Bui Trung Thuong, who highlighted the need to renew business connectivity mechanisms to match the scale and potential of bilateral economic relations.

According to Bui Trung Thuong, IVCCI has 36 years of development and has established a strong foundation in Mumbai and Maharashtra. However, Viet Nam-India economic cooperation has now expanded significantly to other major economic centers across India.

It is therefore time to consider elevating IVCCI’s operations to a nationwide level, rather than maintaining its current focus primarily on Mumbai and Maharashtra.

The Commercial Counsellor proposed that IVCCI consider adjusting and strengthening its organizational model to match its expanded geographical scope, while broadening its network of members and partners and establishing focal points or coordination mechanisms in major economic centers such as Delhi NCR, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, and other areas with growing economic ties with Viet Nam.

The goal is to gradually transform IVCCI from an organization with a strong base in Mumbai into a Viet Nam-India business connectivity platform operating across the country. The proposal has also been incorporated by the Trade Office into the broader direction of its trade promotion program in Mumbai.

“The scale of business connectivity mechanisms needs to match the scale of Viet Nam-India relations. As Vietnamese businesses seek opportunities from Mumbai, Gujarat, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad to Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, business support networks must also be capable of connecting businesses nationwide,” Bui Trung Thuong emphasized.

Proposal for a Viet Nam-India Business Council

Looking further ahead, Commercial Counsellor Bui Trung Thuong proposed that the two sides study the possibility of establishing a Viet Nam-India Business Council with a broader mechanism involving relevant government agencies from both countries, major chambers of commerce and industry, sectoral associations, and leading businesses.

The council could serve as a regular dialogue mechanism to identify and address market access difficulties, promote major trade and investment projects, connect supply chains, technology, and innovation, and coordinate trade promotion programs and two-way business delegations.

Bui Trung Thuong also proposed gradually shifting from one-off business delegations toward a regular exchange mechanism with sector-specific priorities and follow-up on outcomes after each program. Activities should be prepared based on businesses’ actual needs, with potential partners, buyers, investors, and projects identified in advance, combined with market surveys, business visits, and in-depth B2B meetings.

According to Bui Trung Thuong, the effectiveness of trade promotion should be measured not only by the number of conferences held or memoranda of understanding signed, but more importantly by the number of businesses finding partners, the number of contracts and projects implemented, and the number of products that actually gain access to each other’s markets.

VECOM and IVCCI establish a new cooperation framework

At the meeting, VECOM and IVCCI also signed a Memorandum of Understanding, establishing a framework to promote business connectivity, support market access, and develop bilateral cooperation activities.

The participation of VECOM and Vietnamese technology businesses also reflects a shift in the structure of Viet Nam-India cooperation, from traditional trade sectors toward e-commerce, digital transformation, retail solutions, technology, and cross-border business.

As the two countries have upgraded their relationship to an Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and set a target of USD 25 billion in bilateral trade by 2030, IVCCI’s 36th annual general meeting highlighted the increasingly clear need to upgrade not only the scale of bilateral trade but also the infrastructure and mechanisms connecting the two business communities.

From strengthening the role of Mumbai and Maharashtra and making the Mumbai-Ho Chi Minh City cooperation framework more substantive, to expanding IVCCI nationwide and proposing the establishment of a Viet Nam-India Business Council, the initiatives discussed at the meeting share a common objective: turning the potential and strong political ties between the two countries into concrete contracts, investment projects, and business results for companies on both sides.

This article was written by Bui Trung Thuong, Commercial Counsellor and Head of the Viet Nam Trade Office in India.