An international conference on footwear was held in Ho Chi Minh City on September 7 with representatives  from regional countries, including Taiwan and Hong Kong (China), India, Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, the US and Germany taking part.

The participants discussed measures to boost exports in domestic markets as well as the advantages and difficulties for exporters.

Nguyen Van Khanh, General Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Leather and Footwear Association, said that the conference will help Vietnamese businesses learn from other countries. In the near future, the municipal association will attempt to penetrate the South African market and make a fact-finding tour of the market for domestic businesses in November.

Currently, Asian footwear producers account for 70 percent of the world’s total supply of shoes.

With such a high export growth, Vietnam has become the world’s fourth biggest footwear supplier and is expected to earn US$5.2 billion from footwear exports in 2010.

To boost the footwear sector’s development, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has approved an overall plan for development until 2020 with a vision to 2025. The sector aims to earn US$13 billion in 2020 and increase the use of domestically produced raw materials by 30-35 percent to 70 percent in 2020.

On the sidelines of the conference, an international fair on footwear materials and machinery opened on September 8 with 200 stands representing 120 producers from 13 Asian and European countries.