Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh (R) receives Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade, in Hanoi on June 5. (Photo: VGP)

Vietnam and UAE to soon complete CEPA negotiations

Vietnam and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) should work closely together to complete negotiations and sign a comprehensive economic partnership agreement (CEPA) at the earliest possible time.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh made the request while receiving Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE Minister of State for Foreign Trade at a reception in Hanoi on June 5.

He said the two sides should also work towards negotiating an agreement on investment and an agreement on labour cooperation, while further raising bilateral trade in a more balanced direction. Last year saw two-way trade turnover between the two countries hit US$4.4 billion.

To this end, he suggested the two sides actively coordinate to organize the fifth meeting of their Intergovernmental Committee in 2023. He also asked the UAE to actively support Vietnam in establishing cooperation mechanisms on certification, building inspection centers, training human resources, and investing in Halal food production.

Vietnam encourages UAE businesses and funds to invest in the fields of mutual interest, such as energy, renewable energy, logistics, real estate, services, infrastructure, development of innovation centers, digital transformation, green economy, circular economy, climate change response, Halal food, human resource training, and labour cooperation, as well as facilitating cooperation between petroleum and gas businesses of the two countries.

Chinh highly valued the UAE’s economic restructuring model from the oil and gas sector to the development of services and investment funds, saying Vietnam wants to learn from the UAE’s experience in this field, cited VOV.

Minister of State for Foreign Trade Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi for his part affirmed that Vietnam is an important partner for the UAE in the region.

He expressed his impression of Vietnam’s socio-economic development achievements and especially international trade that accounts for 30% of the UAE’s total trade turnover with Southeast Asia.

He highly appreciated Vietnam’s investment environment and affirmed the UAE’s desire to enhance cooperation with Vietnam in trade and investment, especially in the fields of energy, renewable energy, efficient use of water, logistics, seaports, and health care. At the same time, he said the UAE wants to receive more high-quality workers from Vietnam.

The UAE Minister of State assured his host that the two sides would speed up negotiations of their comprehensive economic partnership agreement.

The Vietnamese PM took the occasion to convey State President’s invitation to visit Vietnam to UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. He also conveyed his invitation to UAE Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum to visit Vietnam at an appropriate time.

Vietnam attaches great importance to ties with US: President

President Vo Van Thuong hosted US Ambassador to Vietnam Marc E. Knapper in Hanoi on June 5, during which the State leader affirmed the importance that Vietnam attaches to cooperation between the two countries, describing the US as one of the leading partners of Vietnam.

He hailed the US diplomat’s efforts to collaborate with Vietnamese authorities and visit many Vietnamese localities to seek stronger partnership between the two countries.

Knapper expressed his delight at the progress of bilateral ties after 28 years of normalising their relations and 10 year of setting up their comprehensive partnership, according to VNA.

President Vo Van Thuong (R) hosts US Ambassador to Vietnam Marc E. Knapper in Hanoi on June 5 (Photo: VNA)

He said that US President Joe Biden was pleased with the outcomes of his telephone talks with Vietnamese Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong in March. The ambassador held that amid many global challenges, the strengthening of cooperation between the two countries is meaningful for peace and stability in the region and the world.

He told the host that US businesses who have visited Vietnam recently are eager to invest in health care, high technology, and especially education-training, one of the focuses in the Vietnam-US partnership over the years with the success of the Fulbright University model.

The US will continue to work closely with Vietnam in dealing with aftermaths of the war, including settling problems caused by Agent Orange/dioxin, conducting bomb and mine clearance activities, and searching for soldiers listed as missing-in-action after the war.

Mentioning the fruitful outcomes of the recent phone talks, President Thuong said that the leaders shared important orientations for the development of the bilateral ties in the long run. They also assigned relevant agencies of both sides to implement cooperation in all fields.

He said he hopes the two sides will coordinate closely in organising activities in celebration of the 10-year strategic partnership between the two countries.

The State leader underlined the need to increase the exchange of delegations and meetings at all levels, and to conduct more joint programmes and projects in all fields, thus benefiting both sides.

Regarding economic and trade partnership, Thuong stressed that Vietnam always creates favourable conditions for US firms seeking investment and business opportunities in Vietnam. He suggested that the two sides better exploit their cooperation potential in education and training.

The two countries should also further expand partnership in defense, security, and the settlement of the aftermaths of the war. Other areas of cooperation include humanitarian aid, especially coping with the consequences of Agent Orange in Vietnam, he said, adding that contributing to the process of reconciliation, and healing and building trust between the two countries will open up new opportunities in other important fields.

Vietnam among 21 richest countries in Asia

Vietnam ranked 16th among the tip 21 richest countries throughout Asia, as compiled by Insider Monkey, a finance website focusing on financial markets, hedge funds, and insider trading.

Despite being a lower-middle-income economy, the country has experienced remarkable economic growth over recent decades, making it one of the fastest-growing economies of the 21st century, wrote Insider Monkey.

Photo: VOV

According to the website, Vietnam is a member of several international and intergovernmental organisations, including ASEAN, APEC, CPTPP, the Non-Aligned Movement, OIF, and the WTO. Vietnamese wealth in 2021 stood at US$985 billion, making it one of the richest Asian nations.

To determine which are the wealthiest countries in Asia, Insider Monkey analysed data from Credit Suisse’s Global Wealth Databook 2022. This database calculates wealth, as of 2021, based on the value of financial and non-financial assets while subtracting debt.

The finance website selected the 21 richest countries in Asia based on total wealth, duly ranking the list in ascending order of wealth.

China topped the list with total wealth of US$85,107 trillion in 2021, followed by Japan with US$25,692 trillion and India with US$14,225 trillion, reported VOV.

The others to make the top five include the Republic of Korea and Taiwan (China), with total wealth of US$10,149 trillion and US$5,878 trillion, respectively.

Quang Ninh welcomes about 7.1 million tourist arrivals in five months

The northeastern province of Quang Ninh attracted about 7.1 million tourist arrivals in the first five months of this year, 1.7 times higher than the figure of the same period last year, according to the provincial Department of Tourism.

The province earned 13.14 trillion VND (559.1 billion USD) from tourism activities, 1.83 times higher than that of the same period last year.

In May alone, the number of visitors to Quang Ninh is estimated at 1.15 million, bringing the province tourism revenue of nearly 2.3 trillion VND.

In June, the province expects to attract 1.76 million holidaymakers, cited VNA.

Illustrative photo (Photo: VNA)

In 2023, Quang Ninh strives to become a "can't-miss" destination in Vietnam. It aims to attract 15 million visitors, 500,000 visitors higher than the figure in 2019 before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Vietnam - Norway: Sharing experiences to address challenges and grow a sustainable marine aquaculture

Studying Norway's experiences and success stories would provide Vietnam with suggestions to address the current challenges, build appropriate policies to grow a strong and sustainable marine aquaculture industry.

The Commercial Section of the Norwegian Embassy in Hanoi – Innovation Norway, Hanoi, in coordination with the Directorate of Fisheries (DFish) of the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development Vietnam (MARD), Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), and Khanh Hoa Department of Agriculture and Rural Development organized Seminar “Norway-Vietnam: strengthening cooperation in marine aquaculture” in the Sheraton Nha Trang Hotel, Khanh Hoa Province.

The Seminar spotlights the presence of Norwegian Ambassador to Vietnam H.E. Hilde Solbakken, Deputy Director General of Khanh Hoa Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (Khanh Hoa DARD), Mr. Le Van Hoan; DFish Director General Mr. Tran Dinh Luan, and Commercial Counsellor of the Norwegian Embassy, Director of Innovation Norway in Hanoi, Mr. Arne Kjetil Lian. The event brought together around 100 participants from central authorities suach as DFish, Department of Science, Technology and Environment; DARDs and Departments of Fisheries of coastal provinces of Khanh Hoa, Phu Yen, Ba Ria Vung Tau, Nghe An, Quang Tri, Kien Giang; academia and universities under MARD; Vietnam Sea Culture Associations; international organizations, NGOs; a large number of Norwegian and Vietnamese companies representing different segments of the marine aquaculture industry; and other stakeholders.

The Seminar aimed to create a platform for the participants from the public, private sectors, and academia to discuss ways for Vietnam to develop marine aquaculture in a sustainable manner and the role of relevant stakeholders in that process. The importance of innovation and technological solutions in the industry’s growth and how to train skilled workers to meet the industry’s requirements were also parts of the seminar’s agenda, WVR reported.

Norwegian Ambassador to Vietnam Hilde Solbakken shared the key success factor behind Norway's story. (Photo: PH)

Two special guest speakers from the Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries, Ms Anne B. Osland and Mr. Erlend Hopsdal Skjetne, shared a lot of great insights into how the Norwegian Government developed policies, standards, and technical regulations for marine fish farms, how the licensing procedures go in line with the coastal planning taking into account the need to protect the marine environment and biodiversity.

“This event gives new impetus to Norway-Vietnam bilateral cooperation in the fisheries sector and implements the Letter of Intent between MARD and the Norwegian Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries signed in 2021 for Enhanced Bilateral Cooperation in Marine Aquaculture Industry,” said Ambassador Solbakken in her opening remarks.

“As an ocean nation, coastal industries including fisheries and aquaculture are crucial for Norway’s economic growth and employment in communities all along the Norwegian coastline. Norway cares about how to develop them in a sustainable manner so that our children and grandchildren can also benefit from the ocean as we do today. Good management of our ocean areas is also essential to ensure that different ocean industries can coexist in harmony with each other and the environment. A key success factor behind our story as a world-leading producer and exporter of seafood has been our ability to maintain an open and trust-based dialogue between government, industry, and research institutions. This can be well illustrated through the stories we shared at the Seminar today, which we hope practical examples of how we have done this in Norway,” Ambassador Solbakken continued.

“Despite its huge potential for marine aquaculture development, Vietnam still faces challenges in developing the marine aquaculture industry, including inconsistent infrastructure facilities, elementary equipment and instruments, shortage of skilled workers etc. As coastal nations, Vietnam and Norway share many similarities and interest. Therefore, studying Norwegian experiences and success stories would provide us with suggestions to address the current challenges, build appropriate policies to grow a strong and sustainable marine aquaculture industry,” said Mr. Tran Dinh Luan, MARD DFish Director General.

“In the context of a shift toward sustainable aquaculture practices, for Norway’s aquaculture industry to continue to grow, the industry must focus on sustainable processes. It starts from good planning and good policies, which, in turn, could help create an enabling environment for the industry to grow. Norway has a lot to share in terms of how we develop an enabling regulatory framework with strict regulations and standards for licensing aquaculture at sea or offshore aquaculture, how to run a site at sea to ensure both the site’s production capacity and minimize its impact on the marine eco-system, and so on”, said Ms Anne B. Osland, Head of Aquaculture Licensing Section, Aquaculture and Coastal Management Department, Norwegian DFish.

Today, Norwegian aquaculture is among the largest export industries in the country, only trailing oil and gas. It has become a highly productive and professionalized industry, directly employing more than 8,000 people in coastal communities. Innovation and the development of new technology are key to future success. Research and development of new and more sustainable production processes can happen throughout the value chain and where the private sector has a key role to play. The close collaboration between government, industry, and research has been an important factor that explains the success of Norwegian aquaculture. A strengthened focus on technology and sustainability is now apparent across the entire aquaculture sector in Norway.

Meanwhile, Vietnam has been implementing a Scheme on Marine Aquaculture Development till 2030 with a vision to 2045, approved on 4 October 2021 by the Prime Minister of Vietnam, which aims to develop a consistent, safe, effective, sustainable and eco-friendly marine aquaculture, produce branded products to meet domestic and foreign demand, generate jobs and improve income of the local coastal communities. Reducing exploitation and increasing aquaculture has also been defined by MARD as a policy to balance between human needs and marine resources conservation and sustainable development. Thus, a shift to offshore farming on industrial scale, targeting at exports and improved quality and values of Vietnamese seafood products is inevitable.

An interesting fact shared at the Seminar is that some Norwegian fish farms are open for public visits for informational and educational purposes, which showcases that coastal industries are not always conflicting but can be complementary and grow together.

Participants in the Seminar are offered an opportunity to join a field trip to visit the fish farm of Australis Vietnam Co. Ltd off Van Phong Bay, Khanh Hoa Province to learn about industrial cage farming practices and automated facilities/systems that help reduce the carbon footprint from aquaculture business.

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