Vietnamese and Singaporean entrepreneurs attend the Vietnam – Singapore Investment, Trade and Tourism Promotion Forum within the framework of the Vietnam Phở Festival in Singapore, on October 18, 2025. Photo: Huu Hanh / Tuoi Tre
In his opening remarks, Tuoi Tre editor-in-chief Le The Chu emphasized that the Vietnam Phở Festival offers two spaces: one for cultural exchange and another to turn friendly interactions into real cooperation opportunities.
“Today’s forum is not merely an activity within the festival,” Chu said. “It represents a practical step demonstrating our commitment to expanding bilateral cooperation, from culture and tourism to economy, investment, and trade."
Tuoi Tre Editor-in-Chief Le The Chu delivers opening remarks at the Vietnam – Singapore Investment, Trade and Tourism Promotion Forum within the framework of the Vietnam Phở Festival in Singapore, on October 18, 2025. Photo: Huu Hanh / Tuoi Tre
Focusing on key sectors such as green logistics, tourism, and aviation services, the forum gathered many Vietnamese enterprises seeking to expand their business and strengthen connections with international and Singaporean partners.
Among the participants were Saigontourist Travel Service Company, Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV), Vietnam Airlines, and Cholimex, along with several others.
With the same goal of fostering connections, many Singaporean companies and entrepreneurs also joined the forum, including aviation service provider with Gateway Services in APAC SATS, Sing-Viet Impact Ventures (SVIV), Vietnam – Singapore investment consultants, and various other businesses.
Ashima Krishna, a consultant at Baringa, a Singapore-based consulting firm specializing in energy and green energy investment, said she attended the forum to learn more about Vietnam’s energy landscape, as many of her clients are interested in investing in this field.
Kelvin Tok, business development director of CorpWerk, said he is also seeking investment opportunities in Vietnam for his clients.
Tok said his company is seeking opportunities for clients looking to expand across the region, noting that Vietnam stands out as one of the most promising destinations, with particularly strong interest in the F&B sector.
Nguyen Huu Y Yen, chairman of Saigontourist Travel Service Company, said Vietnam holds great potential for culinary tourism.
The country takes pride in its diverse regional cuisine, with pho standing out as a global symbol of Vietnamese food culture.
According to Yen, Saigontourist Group is seizing this trend with a number of strategic initiatives.
Many of its tour programs are designed to allow visitors to experience Vietnamese cuisine firsthand: from buying ingredients to cooking and enjoying dishes in traditional Vietnamese settings.
Following the COVID-19 pandemic, experiential and personalized tourism has grown stronger, with local culinary traditions increasingly adding value to destinations and boosting the appeal of food tourism.
“With this trend, Vietnamese cuisine will become an opportunity for us to reach international visitors,” Yen added.
In addition to the rise of culinary tourism, Joe Tan, executive vice president of Sing-Viet Impact Ventures (SVIV), said Vietnam’s large population makes it a promising market for investment in the F&B sector.
Tan noted that opening and operating F&B businesses in Singapore has become costly, while Vietnam offers a more attractive environment, with a large population and operational costs up to five times lower.
Joe Tan, executive vice president of Sing-Viet Impact Ventures (SVIV), highlights Vietnam’s strong potential for F&B investment. Photo: Huu Hanh / Tuoi Tre
The Vietnam Phở Festival is organized by the Vietnamese Embassy in Singapore, Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper, and Saigontourist Group, in coordination with the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Industry and Trade and the Vietnamese Community Liaison Committee in Singapore.
The event, which is held under the guidance of the Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, will take place on October 18 and 19 at Our Tampines Hub in the city-state.
The festival comes as Vietnam and Singapore have just upgraded their ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership, underlining the event's timeliness and significance.
With the message 'Pho - Enjoying Together, Growing Together,' the Vietnam Phở Festival 2025 aims not only to invite international friends to enjoy Vietnam's iconic dish—listed by CNN in 2011 among the world's 50 must-try foods—but also to convey Vietnam's aspiration for connection, sharing, and growing together.
Through the festival, pho will be presented as a 'cultural ambassador,' a bridge fostering prosperity and sustainability between Vietnam, Singapore, and global friends.
The highlight of the event is offering Singaporeans and visitors the chance to savor authentic Vietnamese pho, freshly prepared by top Vietnamese chefs and culinary artisans at Our Tampines Hub.
Head chefs from five-star hotels under Saigontourist Group, including Rex Saigon, Majestic Saigon, Grand Saigon, Caravelle Saigon, and the pho restaurant of Vietnam Golf & Country Club, along with renowned pho brands such as Pho Thin Bo Ho, Pho Ta, Pho Phu Gia, Pho Vuong, and Ba Ban Pho, will showcase the diversity of pho recipes and styles of enjoymient.
Beyond pho, visitors can also enjoy a range of traditional Vietnamese dishes, prepared by Saigontourist's five-star chefs, creating a vibrant 'culinary symphony.'
Alongside the festival, a large-scale investment forum titled the 'Vietnam-Singapore Investment, Trade and Tourism Promotion Forum 2025' will take place, highlighting the event's practical significance.
The forum will kick off right after the opening ceremony on the morning of October 18 and is expected to attract around 150 enterprises from both countries.
At the forum, government agencies and businesses will discuss new cooperation trends in green processing industries and logistics, tourism and aviation services, the export and import of Vietnamese agricultural products and specialties, as well as digital transformation and e-commerce.
In particular, the Business Matching program (one-on-one business meetings) will facilitate direct connections between Vietnamese and Singaporean enterprises, helping them explore practical partnership opportunities.
Nghi Vu - Dong Nguyen / Tuoi Tre News
Link nội dung: https://news.tuoitre.vn/business-and-culture-come-together-at-vietnam-pho-festival-103251018184222649.htm