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Delegates to “Meet Korea in the northern region” program (Photo: VNA) |
Jointly held by the provincial People’s Committee, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the RoK Embassy in Vietnam, the program, named “Meet Korea in the northern region”, brought together more than 150 Korean firms and representatives from 13 northern cities and provinces.
The event marked the start of a series of activities within the “Meet Korea” program 2023 co-organised by the ministry and the embassy.
Vu stressed that the RoK now ranks first in terms of direct investment in Vietnam, second in official development assistance (ODA), labour and tourism, and third in trade cooperation.
Meanwhile, Vietnam is a big partner of the RoK in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), accounting for half of the total trade revenue between the RoK and ASEAN.
Therefore, Vietnam always supports and makes efforts to remove difficulties for Korean investors in line with legal regulations, helping them run long-term business in the country, the official affirmed.
The RoK Ambassador to Vietnam Oh Young-ju noted that the “Meet Korea in the northern region” program, in its fourth edition, has become an annual exchange venue for businesses of the two countries.
The event this year has special significance as it is the first held after the two countries upgraded their relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership in December 2022, helping enterprises and leaders of the two countries explore cooperation opportunities in new areas, she added.
Chairwoman of the provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Huong Giang said the program offers a good opportunity for businesses and investors to set up cooperation with Bac Ninh and other northern localities.
The program featured discussions on cooperation in supply and production chains, and sustainable economic development, during which leaders of the participating cities and provinces introduced potential, strengths, and socio-economic development in their localities, major Korean projects there, and their investment attraction orientations.
For their part, Korean enterprises raised proposals on issues of shared concern like supply chain diversification, smart city building, IT application in green development, environmental pollution response, and administrative reform.
Deputy minister Vu said such proposals will help the Vietnamese government and local authorities set forth specific measures and solutions to enhance cooperation between Vietnamese localities and Korean partners, as well as the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.
