Vietnam boosts cooperation with Middle East, North African partners
Addressing the forum, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung said that Vietnam and Middle East and North African countries have great advantages and potential for boosting effective cooperation in the future.
Vietnam is an ideal investment destination, with a stable socio- political environment, a lucrative market of about 90 million consumers, and an abundant labor force. In addition, the country is located in Asia and the Pacific, a dynamic region that is leading the global economy, said the Vietnamese government leader.
The Vietnamese government hopes the Forum for Economic Cooperation between Vietnam and Middle East and North African Partners will add fresh impetus to bilateral cooperation, primarily in economics, trade, investment, oil and gas, and labor, Dung said.
He also stressed that Vietnam is implementing its socio- economic development strategy till 2020, focusing on finalizing its institutional and legal system, developing modern infrastructure, and generating quality human resources, along with restructuring the economy and renewing its growth model for rapid and sustainable development, Xinhua reports.
The country is joining negotiations of key free trade agreements (FTAs) such as Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, Trans-Pacific Partnership, and FTAs with the European Union, and the Customs Union of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan.
"We are committed to creating the best possible conditions for foreign investors to do efficient, long-term business in Vietnam," Dung said, reconfirming with participants that "your success is ours."
During the two-day event, policymakers and business executives from Vietnam, and Middle East and North African nations will review the investment and business environment in both sides, and possibility of greater cooperation in energy, trade, infrastructure development, labor, agriculture and tourism.
Vietnam has established 12 diplomatic missions in Middle East and African nations, while 15 African nations have opened their representative offices in Vietnam.
According to the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry and Trade, two- way trade has increased by 878 percent in the past decade, from 889 million U.S. dollars in 2002 to 7.4 billion U.S. dollars in 2012.
African businesses are investing in Vietnam's oil and gas, seaports, industries, and real estate market. In return, Vietnamese businesses are developing projects in the region.
Approximately 26,000 Vietnamese nationals are currently working under contracts in Middle East and North African nations.