During a reception in Hanoi on June 26 for the Fukuoka governor, Thinh lauded the official’s working visit to Vietnam which took place at a time when the two countries are celebrating the 45th anniversary of diplomatic ties.
Japan is now the biggest provider of official development assistance (ODA) of Vietnam, she said, adding that Japan ranks second among foreign investors in the Southeast Asian country and is its third biggest tourism partner.
Speaking highly of the effective cooperation between Fukuoka and Vietnamese localities, especially Hanoi over the past years, the Vice President thanked the prefecture authorities for assisting the Vietnamese Consulate General in Fukuoka in serving as a bridge linking Fukuoka with Vietnamese localities.
Thinh wished that both sides would reinforce collaboration across human resources training and education, and Fukuoka would receive more Vietnamese trainees to improve their skills.
The two sides should effectively carry out exchanges between the two countries’ students to further deepen people-to-people diplomacy and their mutual understanding, she added.
Ogawa, for his part, said his visit aims to mark the 10th anniversary of the signing of a friendship cooperation agreement with the capital city of Hanoi.
He pledged to further step up economic and people-to-people exchanges between Fukuoka and Vietnamese localities in the coming years.
