Rice deal inked with Sierra Leone

June 22, 2011 | 21:06

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A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on rice trade was signed yesterday in Hanoi between the ministries of industry and trade of Vietnam and the Republic of Sierra Leone.

Sierra Leone Minister of Trade and Industry Richard Konteh (left) and Vietnam Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang exchange copies of their memorandum of understanding on rice trade yesterday in Hanoi.

The MoU would serve as a legal framework for establishing a stable rice trade between Vietnam and the Republic of Sierra Leone in a move to further accelerate bilateral food co-operation in the time ahead, the Vietnamese Ministry's Department of African, West Asian and South Asian Markets said in a press release.

Seeking more export opportunities to the Republic of Sierra Leone would also contribute to speeding up Vietnam's rice exports to the African market, which currently made up one- fourth of the country's total annual rice export volume, the department said.

Sierra Leone imported 14,000 tonnes of Vietnamese rice last year worth $8.04 million, accounting for 40 per cent of the country's total import value from Vietnam.

Vietnam and Sierra Leone previously signed an MoU on fostering co-operation in agriculture and salt production and agreements on economy, trade, culture and technology.

Two-way trade remained modest in the past five years, however, reaching over $22 million in 2010, the department said.

During the period, Vietnam enjoyed an export surplus with main export items including food, tobacco raw materials, mazut oil and equipment.

VNS

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