Vietnam's engineering industry will face big challenges when it becomes a member of the World Trade Organization, expected in late 2006, local newspaper Vietnam Industry reported Wednesday.

The country has yet to have strong legitimate technical barriers to prevent import of items with low quality or low technical level, while its management over engineering products is still loose and ineffective, the newspaper quoted Nguyen Xuan Chuan, chairman of the Vietnam Engineering Scientific and Technological Association, as saying.

Besides, Vietnam encounters shortage of industry associations and societies, so engineering enterprises find it hard to join hands in participating in tenders and production and export activities, Chuan said, noting that the firms' marketing capability is very poor.

The industry's manpower is still weak, as only 19 percent of engineering workers have undergone full training. Its consultancy and design capability is also low, forcing the enterprises to buy designs and hire foreign consultants, he stated.

Under Vietnam's engineering development strategy, the industry, by 2010, will meet 40-50 percent of the domestic demand for engineering products, and export 30 percent of its total production value.

To this end, Vietnam is facilitating production of industrial equipment, seagoing vessels, automobile components and spare parts, agriculture and tool machines with lighter weight and higher capacity, and construction and electrical equipment, Chuan said.

Source: Xinhua