Fairfax County became home to international commerce history Tuesday, with Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe and Secretary of Trade and Commerce Todd Haymore joining officials for a ceremony marking a first-ever agreement to promote business between Vietnamese provinces and a U.S. state.
Haymore and leaders from six Vietnamese provinces signed a memorandum of understanding that urges greater cooperation to stimulate trade between the two areas.
The event took place on the Annandale campus of Northern Virginia Community College, which hosted a touring delegation of more than 100 government officials, including Vietnamese Ambassador to the U.S. Pham Quang Vinh, and business people to discuss commerce linking northern Virginia and Vietnam. The six provinces are spread out throughout northern and southern Vietnam.
Vietnamese and northern Virginia business people also discussed opportunities in several industry sectors as well as market-entry issues in the two countries.
Gerald L. Gordon, Ph.D., president and CEO of the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority (FCEDA) made the case for Fairfax County, which is already home to more than 400 foreign-owned firms. “You’re in a very good location,” he told the gathering, citing the county’s proximity to the nation’s capital, diversity of population, highly educated workforce and superior school system.
“These relationships take some time to nurture, but I think we’re already seeing results by the number of companies from Vietnam that are talking about coming here very soon,” Gordon said. “Certainly, we’ll have Vietnamese companies coming this way, to Fairfax County. It’s a natural fit because many of them are well-funded and highly skilled in comparable technologies.”
McAuliffe urged Vietnamese delegates to consider Virginia and extolled the virtues of northern Virginia. “These communities are booming because they have the best education systems in the country,” he said. “We have the best workforce development. This is how you grow your economy. We want to do more business [with Vietnam].”
Time magazine called Fairfax County “one of the great economic success stories of our time.” Fairfax County offers businesses state-of-the-art infrastructure, access to global markets through Washington Dulles International Airport and a highly skilled, well-educated workforce.
The award-winning Fairfax County Economic Development Authority promotes Fairfax County as a business and technology center. In addition to its headquarters in Tysons Corner, Fairfax County’s largest business district, the FCEDA maintains marketing offices in six important global business centers: Bangalore, Berlin, London, Los Angeles, Seoul and Tel Aviv. Follow the FCEDA onFacebook, Twitter,LinkedIn.
