Vietnam’s agricultural and seafood exports to Africa surge 100% in early 2025
Vietnam has seen a remarkable 105% surge in agricultural and seafood exports to Africa in the first quarter of 2025, marking one of the strongest performances among all export markets.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, total exports for the sector hit USD 15.72 billion during the first three months, with a trade surplus approaching USD 4.4 billion, up 13.1% year-on-year.
All major product groups recorded growth: agricultural exports rose to USD 8.53 billion (+12.2%), forestry products to USD 4.21 billion (+11.2%), seafood to USD 2.29 billion (+18.1%), livestock products to USD 131.3 million (+18.5%), and production inputs to USD 549.5 million (+19.6%).
Strong price gains across key commodities fueled much of the rise. Coffee export prices jumped over 70%, rubber nearly 32%, pepper nearly 65%, and cashew nearly 30%. This pushed overall export revenues up, even as volumes in some categories remained stable.
Notably, coffee exports brought in USD 2.88 billion, a 49.5% increase, while shrimp exports climbed to USD 943 million, up nearly 38%. Conversely, rice and fruit-vegetable exports both slipped to USD 1.14 billion, down 19.7% and 11.3% respectively.
Growth wasn’t limited to Africa. Exports to Europe grew by nearly 38%, to the Americas by 15.7%, and to Asia and Oceania by 2% and 0.8%, respectively.
Meanwhile, Vietnam imported USD 11.32 billion worth of agro-forestry-fishery goods during the same period. Imports from Africa alone jumped 119.2% to USD 356 million. The Americas remained the largest supplier (USD 3.1 billion, up 21.8%), followed by Asia and Europe.
Looking ahead, the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment has set an export target of USD 64 – 65 billion for 2025, with a projected sectoral GDP growth of 4%, in line with the government’s national target of 8%.
To achieve these goals, the ministry plans to strengthen existing markets like China, the U.S., Japan, and the EU while expanding into high-potential regions such as the Middle East and Halal nations. Authorities will also support enterprises in utilizing free trade agreements like CPTPP and EVFTA to grow exports and protect Vietnamese brands in international markets.
VFM
