The continuous momentum of South Africa in deepening relations with various countries is something we appreciate in agriculture.
We view these engagements as key to investments and export expansion. The efforts of South Africa’s Department of Agriculture in signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Socialist Republic of Vietnam on November 21, 2025, are one such effort.
The MoU focuses on expanded cooperation in crop production, plant protection, animal husbandry, veterinary services, research, development, technology transfer and agricultural trade. These are all key areas for our farming sector.
Admittedly, the MoUs won’t lead to sudden changes or the opening of markets; trade agreements are needed for that. Still, they help maintain close relationships and collaboration, which is key to the establishment of trade agreements at a, hopefully, not distant future.
Collaborating with Vietnam is also a good choice for our needs. You see, Vietnam is a market we keep on our radar in agriculture. The country spends over US$30 billion on agricultural imports annually.
But if one looks at Vietnam’s agricultural products suppliers, South Africa doesn’t feature prominently. South Africa ranked 34th among agricultural suppliers to Vietnam.
In 2024, Vietnam imported US$34 billion worth of agricultural products. South Africa accounted for only 0.3% of these imports (about US$89 million).
The key suppliers of agricultural products to Vietnam were China, Brazil, the United States, Argentina, Cambodia, Australia, India, and Indonesia, collectively accounting for 70% of the country’s agricultural imports.
From a product’s perspective, Vietnam mainly imports maize, nuts, cotton, soybean oilcake, wheat, rice, soybean, beef, and palm oil. South Africa already exports maize, apples and pears, table grapes, nuts, and cotton to Vietnam.
Still, some of these products face some duties, albeit at MFN levels that are reasonably low. For example, South African apples, pears and table grapes face an 8% duty in Vietnam.
If the duties were even lower, South Africa’s penetration into the Vietnamese market would be even more significant than it is now.
In addition to these products, South Africa also exports a range of fruits, wine, red meat, grains, and other products.
Thus, these MoUs that prioritize partnerships, such as the current one in Vietnam, coupled with the recent State Visit, help ensure a strong focus on trade.
We talk about trade a lot because our agricultural sector is export-oriented. And when we consider the long-term growth prospects, as articulated in the Agriculture and Agro-processing Master Plan, published in May 2022, we know we need to expand into more markets to keep farming businesses financially sound.
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