SWISS - VIET
ECONOMIC FORUM
HANOI 2026
October 18-20, 2026
Ha Noi, Viet Nam
3-DAY PROGRAM OVERVIEW
Theme: From Bilateral Strength to Regional Impact
Advancing Switzerland–Viet Nam Partnerships in a Connected Global Economy
Day 1: 18 October, 2026
VIP Reception &
Strategic Alignement
Day 2: 19 October, 2026
Main Forum Day
Day 3: 20 October, 2026
Field Visits &
Cultural Discovery
DAY 2: 19 OCTOBER, 2026
SVEF Main Forum Day
Venue: Melia Hotel (44B Ly Thuong Kiet)
Day 2 is the centrepiece of the Forum - open to all registered delegates. It is framed as the platform that translates the FTA into concrete business action.
08:30 (60 min) | Registration & Welcome Coffee
Format: Networking
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Delegate registration
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Exhibition open
09:30 (90 min) | Welcome & High Level Policy Dialogue
Format: Two Keynote Speeches & Moderated Panel
THEME: OPENING THE DOOR: FROM FTA SIGNATURE TO MARKET OPPORTUNITY
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Welcome address by SVEF Leader
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Opening Keynotes: 'From Signature to Implementation - What the FTA Means for Business Today'
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Vietnam’s growth ambitions and Swiss–Vietnamese cooperation
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Regional integration and supply chain opportunities
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Practical priorities for FTA implementation
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Government and business action to deliver results
Introduction: Ms. Rachel Isenschmid, Secretary General, SVEF
Welcome Remarks: Dr. Philipp Rösler, President, SVEF
Keynote Speakers:
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H.E. Ms. Helene Budliger Artieda, State Secretary, State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO)
Moderator: Dr. Philipp Rösler, President, SVEF
Panelists:
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Ms. Anja Fiedler, CEO, Switzerland Global Enterprises (S-GE)
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Ms. Mariam J.Sherman, Country Director for Viet Nam, Cambodia and Lao PDR, World Bank
11:00 (60 min) | Session I - Industrial Transformation & Supply Chains
Format: Keynote + Panel + case studies
THEME: BUILDING SMART MANUFACTURING, RESILIENT SUPPLY CHAINS AND SUSTAINABLE INDUSTRIAL PARTNERSHIPS IN THE POST-FTA ERA
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High-value manufacturing & industrial upgrading
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Smart manufacturing & Industry 4.0
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Supply chain resilience & diversification
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Precision engineering & advanced manufacturing
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Technology transfer & industrial innovation
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ESG & sustainable production
Moderator: Ms. Quyen Nguyen, Center Co-Head of Smart Manufacturing and Global Value Chain, HCMC C4IR
Keynote Speaker: Ambassador Pietro Lazzeri, Head of the Economic Cooperation and Development, SECO
Panelists:
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Mr. Martin Hirzel, CEO, Swissmem
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Mr. Khuat Quang Hung, Director of Corporate Affairs & Sustainability, Nestlé Vietnam
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Ms. Nguyen Thuy Lam Tuyen, General Director, Board Chairwoman and Country Holding Officer, ABB Vietnam
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Dr. Jackson Woo, Managing Director, SGS
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Dr. Sumeet Gupta, Regional President APAC, Oerlikon
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Ms. Lê Đinh, Regional Representative, Sedex Vietnam
12:00 (90 min) | Lunch Break
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Business Lunch & Executive Networking
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Curated bilateral table conversations
13:30 (60 min) | Session II - Finance & Investment Ecosystems
Format:Keynote + Panel
THEME: FROM CAPITAL TO GROWTH: CAPITAL MARKETS, INVESTMENT FLOWS & FINANCIAL CONNECTIVITY
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Capital market development and investor confidence
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Financial centres, cross-border finance and digital innovation
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Financing business growth and supply chain participation
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Swiss–Vietnamese partnerships in investment, expertise and talent
Moderator: Mr. Brook Taylor, Chief Executive Officer - Asset Management and Executive Director, VinaCapital
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Mirjam Staub-Bisang, Chair of the Board of Directors, Swiss Investment Fund for Emerging Markets (SIFEM)
Panelists:
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Mr. Reto Marx, CEO Singaore, Sygnum
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Ms. Tra Nguyen Zbonski, Managing Director
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Prof. Dr. Nguyen Duc Trung, President, Ho Chi Minh University of Banking
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Ms. Ly Nguyen, Manager, Tony Blair Institute for Global Change (TBI)
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Mr. Siva Krishnan, Chief Risk Officier, Techcombank
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Representative, State Securities Commission of Vietnam (SSC)
14:30 (30 min) | Coffee Break
15:00 (60 min) | Afternoon Parallel Sessions - Round 1
Format: Three focused sessions run in parallel. Delegates choose one.
SESSION A: MOBILITY & TRADE CONNECTIVITY
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Smart logistics & multimodal transportation
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Regional connectivity between Europe & ASEAN
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Infrastructure investment & PPP models
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Urban mobility & smart cities
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High-speed rail development
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Ports, airports & trade corridors
Moderator: Mr. Marco Förster, Ha Noi Representative, SVEF
Keynote Speaker: to be confirmed
Panelists:
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Mr. Benoit De Quillaq, Managing Director, MSC
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Mr. Thomas Rechsteiner, Vice President/Operations Director, Linxon
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Ms. Lina Yu, CEO, Schindler Vietnam
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Ms. Noelle Meier, Lead Public Affairs, Swissrails
SESSION B: ENERGY TRANSITION & GREEN FINANCE
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Renewable energy investment
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Green finance & blended finance
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Carbon markets & carbon credits
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Energy transition technologies
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Climate resilience & ESG
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Swiss cleantech solutions for Vietnam
Moderator: to be confirmed
Keynote Speaker: Mr. Vo Hoang Hai, Deputy CEO, Nam A Bank
Panelists:
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Mr. Marco Appolloni, Senior Vice President, GE Vernova
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Mr. Carsten Böhler, Head of Project Finance & Infrastructure, SERV
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Mr. Werner Groenendijk, Chief Finance and Investment Officer, Vin Energo
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Mr. Madhav Joshi, Head of ELDS Factory, ABB Vietnam
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Mr. Nguyen Duy Giang, Deputy Director General and CFO, PV Power
SESSION C: INNOVATION, AI & DIGITAL ECONOMY
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AI commercialisation
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Deep-tech ecosystems
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Venture capital
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Research commercialisation
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Start-up scaling
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Technology transfer
Moderator: Mr. Nguyen Van Chuong, Program Manager in Da Nang, Vietnam, Swiss Entrepreneurship Program (Swiss EP)
Keynote Speaker: Prof. Dr. Nguyen Trung Dung, CEO, BK Holdings
Panelists:
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Prof. Dr. Harald Gall, Dean of the Faculty of Business, Economics and Informatics, University of Zurich
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Mr. Markus Baur, CEO, Axon Active
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Ms. Ny Bui, Director, Sales and Customer Experience, Datbike
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Mr. Jonathan McGuinness, AI Pathfinder, 4th-IR (Zug)
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Mr. Jay Shah, Vice President of Business Development, Moxo
16:15 - 17:15 | Afternoon Parallel Session - Round 2
Format: Three focused sessions run in parallel. Delegates choose one.
SESSION D: SHAPING THE FUTURE OF HEALTHCARE
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Patient access with quality & transparency
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Leverage EFTA for market access
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Healthcare innovation scaling
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Advance Swiss-Vietnamese partnerships
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Agile & consistent healthcare regulation
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Regulatory Knowledge Exchange
Moderator: Dr. Philipp Rösler, President, SVEF
Keynote Speaker: Mr. Stefan P.Butz, CEO, DKSH
Tentative Panelists:
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Mr. Burak Pekmezci, General Manager, Roche Pharma
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Mr. Charaf Kadri, Vice President, Healthcare, DKSH Vietnam
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Mr. Jondy Syjuco, Country President, Novartis
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Mr. Ricky He, General Manager, Roche Diagnostics
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Representative, VIMDA
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Representative, Drug Administration of Vietnam (DAV)
SESSION E: EDUCATION COOPERATION & TALENT DEVELOPMENT
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Higher education & international partnerships
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Vocational education & workforce development
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Applied research & innovation
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Talent mobility & academic exchange
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Industry-academia collaboration
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Future skills & lifelong learning
Keynote Speaker: Dr. Marcus Wittner, Founding Partner, Contagi Group
Moderator: Mr. An Mai, CEO, IMT Solutions
Panelists:
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Mr. Anatolijus Fourarcre, CEO, SPS Viet Nam
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Mr. Hoang Viet Ha, President, FPT University
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Ms. Hanh Nguyen, Country Representative, The Dariu Foundation
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Ms. Van Dang, CEO, Savycom
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Prof. Max von Zedtwitz, Ph.D , Strategy and Managing Director, SGI Institute of Management in Asia (Singapore), University of St. Gallen
SESSION F: LEGAL FRAMEWORKS & MARKET ENTRY
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Market entry & investment strategies
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Legal structures & corporate governance
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Regulatory compliance & investment facilitation
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Intellectual property & technology transfer
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Arbitration & dispute resolution
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Cross-border business partnerships
Moderator: Mr. Roger Leitner, Board Member, Swiss-Asian Chamber of Commerce
Keynote Speaker: Mr. Lutz Christoph Koch, Managing Director Hanoi, RÖDL
Panelists:
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Mr. Fabian Stiefvater, Hub Leader of SBH South East Asia and Pacific, SBH
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Prof. Dr. Le Hong Hanh, Chairman, Vietnam International Arbitration Center
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Kevin Trinh Vu, Head of Asia Pacific Support, Endress+Hauser
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Mr. Huynh Cong Thang, Co-Founder, Chairman, InnoLab Asia
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Mr. Phung Anh Tuan, Managing Director, VCI Legal
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Mr. Luu Hoang Long, Director General, Intellectual Property Office of Viet Nam (to be confirmed)
17:30 - 18:15 | Closing Plenary — From Dialogue to Action
THEME: WHAT WE BUILD TOGETHER: THE POST-FTA BILATERAL AGENDA
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First commitments with the FTA in place what Swiss and Vietnamese companies are prepared to do
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Key takeaways and outputs from all Forum sessions
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MoU Signing Ceremony: formalisation of bilateral agreements and partnerships
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SVEF Cooperation Roadmap 2026–2030: task forces, milestones, and accountability
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Closing remarks by SVEF leadership and senior Vietnamese government representative
Speakers & Co-lead to be updated
18:15 | Networking Dinner
ORGANIZERS


CO-HOSTS
CONTACT US
Switzerland Office: Trust Square, Rennweg 57, Zurich-8001, Switzerland
VietNam Office: Vian Tower, 26 Street 40, Thao Dien Ward Thu Duc, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

