Welcoming the delegation, Deputy Minister Y Thong expressed his pleasure at receiving members of the Miyazaki–Vietnam Friendship Exchange Association at the Ministry of Ethnic and Religious Affairs.

He said the Vietnam–Japan Comprehensive Strategic Partnership continues to develop positively across a wide range of fields, with people-to-people exchanges and cooperation between local governments playing a particularly important role in strengthening mutual trust, understanding and friendship between the two countries.

Introducing the delegation to the situation in Vietnam's ethnic minority and mountainous regions, Y Thong said the country is home to 54 ethnic groups, including 53 ethnic minority communities with more than 14 million people, accounting for about 14.7% of the national population.

Over the years, Vietnam's Party and State have consistently identified the comprehensive development of ethnic minority and mountainous areas as a major policy priority. This commitment has been reflected in a range of preferential programs and policies covering infrastructure development, poverty reduction, education, healthcare, vocational training and the preservation of cultural heritage.

Despite significant progress, these regions continue to face considerable challenges, particularly in infrastructure, human resource quality, sustainable livelihoods and access to science and technology. Vietnam therefore places great importance on expanding international cooperation and learning from the development experience of other countries, including Japan.

On behalf of the delegation, NEGISHI Hirotaka thanked the Ministry for its warm welcome and expressed his admiration for Vietnam's socio-economic achievements as well as the government's efforts to improve living standards in ethnic minority communities.

Expanding cooperation for sustainable development

During the meeting, the two sides discussed ways to strengthen cooperation between Japan's Miyazaki Prefecture and Vietnam's mountainous provinces and ethnic minority areas by building on each side's strengths and development needs.

Negishi Hirotaka said the Miyazaki–Vietnam Friendship Exchange Association was established to promote friendship between the people of Miyazaki Prefecture and Vietnam through cultural and educational exchanges, local government cooperation and business networking.

In the coming years, the association hopes to expand cooperation programs with Vietnam's mountainous provinces, particularly in workforce development, youth exchanges, high-tech agriculture and community-based tourism.

Deputy Minister Y Thong welcomed the association's commitment to supporting localities with large ethnic minority populations. He encouraged MJVA to continue serving as a bridge connecting the government, businesses and people of Miyazaki Prefecture with Vietnam's mountainous provinces, while promoting student exchange programs, vocational training, knowledge-sharing in high-tech agriculture and agricultural processing, cultural preservation and community-based tourism development.