On December 17, within the framework of a business trip to attend the Summit commemorating the 50th anniversary of ASEAN-Japan relations, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh received Governor of Aichi province Hideaki Omura, Governor of Tochigi province Fukuda Tomikazu, Governor of Niigata Hideyo Hanazumi, and Governor Kuroiwa Yuji of Kanagawa.

At the meetings, Chinh said one of the goals of his visit is promoting cooperation between Vietnamese and Japanese localities, and expand exchanges and cooperation for mutual benefits.

The head of the Vietnamese Government praised the achievements of the cooperation between Aichi, Tochigi, Niigata, Kanagawa and Yamanashi with Vietnamese partners, and thanked the support of the governors and local authorities in enhancing cooperation with Vietnam.

Chinh suggested that Japanese localities cooperate with Vietnamese Thai Binh, Khanh Hoa, Hai Duong and Can Tho, whose representatives were members of the Vietnamese delegation this time.

Chinh also asked the governors to strengthen relations with Vietnam to exploit potential through exchanges, investment promotion, human resource development and education with Vietnam’s provinces.

The Japanese Governors expressed their honor to meet Prime Minister Chinh during his business trip to Japan to attend the Summit commemorating 50 years of ASEAN-Japan relations.

They also expressed their satisfaction about the upgrading of the Vietnam-Japan relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership last November, and highly appreciated the active contribution of the Vietnamese community to Japanese socio-economic development.

Emphasizing that Japanese provinces want to receive more Vietnamese to study and work, the governors pledged to create favorable conditions for Vietnamese to better integrate in the host country.

Vietnam festivals organized regularly

Aichi Governor Hideaki Omura reported to the Prime Minister about the close and extensive cooperation between Aichi province with HCM City, especially in the fields of investment and people-to-people exchange. Currently, 200 provincial businesses are investing in Vietnam, and 53,000 Vietnamese are living and working in the province, the highest figure in Japan.

He said he wanted to cooperate with more Vietnam’s localities, especially HCM City and Vinh Phuc. Since 2018, Aichi has been regularly organizing Vietnam’s festivals with cooperation of HCM City, attracting more than 100,000 visitors and helping promote the Vietnam’s images in the province and the cultural and tourism cooperation between the two countries.

Chinh asked Omura, which has advantages in industrial production, to support Vietnam to implement its modernization and industrialization strategy. Chinh said he hoped the province would increase the number of Aichi businesses investing in Vietnam by two folds to 400 after 10 years, and promote the Cherry Blossom festival in HCM City.

Tochigi Governor Fukuda Tomikazu said the province has signed a cooperation agreement with Vietnam’s Ministry of Planning and Investment to enhance investment in Vietnam.  The province has been accelerating cooperation in education and tourism between Tochigi and Vietnam via cooperation with the University of Science and Technology, and the first organization of Vietnam Festival last November.

Recalling the visit to Tochigi in November 2021, Chinh requested the governor to strengthen cooperation in the fields it has advantages in, including digital transformation, labor, training and tourism, as well as facilitate the operation of Vietnam’s FPT corporation in the province.

Niigata’s Hideyo Hanazumi said his province has signed cooperation agreements with Vietnam’s Thanh Hoa and Vinh Long in investment, trade and tourism.

Highly appreciating the efforts by Hanazumi in promoting cooperation between the province and Vietnam, Chinh said many investors from the province have succeeded in their business in Vietnam, especially in education and food processing.

Meanwhile, Kanagawa’s Kuroiwa Yuji said the province has held six Vietnam festivals there, four Kanagawa festivals in Hanoi and Da Nang, and investment and trade promotion conferences.

There are 24 Kanagawa businesses investing in Vietnam and 17 Vietnam’s businesses investing in Kanagawa.

Kuroiwa Yuji affirmed the wish to continue to substantially promote relations between the province with Vietnam’s ministries, branches and partners, especially the partners it has established relations with, such as Hanoi, HCM City, Hung Yen, Quang Ninh, Can Tho and Lang Son.

Prime Minister Chinh requested the governor to consider setting up a research center at the National Center for Innovation of Vietnam to survey the aging population, and recommend policies to the problem.

Thu Hang