Good logistics management, both by governments and businesses, will help enhance competitiveness and growth, said Luong Hoang Thai, director-general of Vietnam’s Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Department of Multilateral Trade Policy.

Luong specifically addressed small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the audience and told them they had a vital role to play in integrating the efficient use of logistics in Global Value Chains (GVCs).

“Logistics are an integral part of GVCs,” he said. “Since logistics are involved in a variety of areas such as sourcing and procurement, order fulfilment, storage of raw materials, production planning, scheduling, controlling cost-effective flow, assembly, packaging, maintenance, warehousing, distribution, finished goods, customers service and others, there is huge room for SMEs to be involved. Their deep integration is inevitable.”

The workshop, organised by the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Apec International Secretariat, was aimed at highlighting the need for a deeper understanding of logistics as an important service industry and the role SMEs needed to play. Experts and Apec officials spoke about the challenges they faced in getting SMEs to be more educated in the value of logistics. Government policies and regulations played a part, they said.

A more in-depth understanding of the outsourcing process, its advantages and disadvantages as well as experiences in dealing with challenges raised from outsourcing were also discussed.

The one-day workshop also highlighted issues in supply chain management and SMEs’ capability in management and development.

Corazon C Curay, vice president of the Supply Chain Management Association of the Philippines, said: “We would like to share our experiences and challenges, as well as discuss the policies that need to be enacted by the Government. “With the help of Apec we can push this reform. I know the Government is now doing something about it and we are happy that we are moving forward.

“I just read that we are the 10th fastest growing economy in the world, and that is also translating to the SMEs. All the local measures are up in the global competitiveness report.”