P&G sees Vietnam as regional hub

Procter & Gamble (P&G) has identified Vietnam as one of its strategic markets and aims to make it a regional manufacturing hub and a sustainable supply source for its other markets.

Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang and P&G Vice President Nitin Darbari. Photo: Nhat Bac/VGP

P&G Vice President Nitin Darbari shared the plan during a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang on March 4.

During the meeting, the Deputy Prime Minister praised P&G's investment activities in Vietnam, recognizing their significant contribution to the economic and social development of the country, as well as to Vietnam-US relations.

Quang suggested that P&G show interest in expanding partnerships with Vietnamese businesses, facilitating their involvement in the company's supply chain and expressing a commitment to workforce development in Vietnam. He also expressed the hope that P&G would join other US companies, advocating for the US government to quickly recognize Vietnam as a market economy.

Quang stressed that the Vietnamese Government is committed to improving the investment environment and promoting transformation to create favorable conditions for foreign enterprises to do long-term business in Vietnam.

Nitin Darbari acknowledged the Government's efforts in making Vietnam an attractive destination for foreign investment, with a GDP growth rate of 5.05% in 2023 despite global challenges.

Darbari thanked the Vietnamese Government for its support during the Covid-19 pandemic and underlined P&G's strategic view of Vietnam as a key market.

P&G aims to establish Vietnam as a regional manufacturing hub and a sustainable supply source for its other markets, he said.

As a leading US multinational consumer goods company, P&G has invested US$450 million in Vietnam since 1995. With over 830 highly skilled employees and indirect job creation for more than 5,000 people, P&G has actively engaged in community activities and public-private partnerships in Vietnam.

The company is currently expanding its production lines for shaving products between 2024 and 2026, bringing advanced razor blade manufacturing technology to Vietnam for export to key markets in the Asia-Pacific region. This cutting-edge technology, previously available only in P&G's manufacturing chain in the US and Germany, demonstrates the company's commitment to innovation and growth in Vietnam.

P&G is also diversifying and promoting inclusivity in its global supply chain by increasing the presence of women-led supplier businesses. In 2023, P&G organized the first global Women Entrepreneurs Academy in Vietnam helping to build the capacity of current and potential female entrepreneurs in the company's local supply chain.