VietNamNet Bridge – A seminar was held in Hanoi on February 28 by the National Assembly (NA) Office and the Konrad Adenauer Stifung (KAS) political foundation from Germany to discuss issues of State power and constitutional experiences of other countries.

NA Vice Chairwoman Nguyen Kim Ngan attended the event along with Vietnamese and foreign experts from Germany, the Republic of Korea, Singapore, Cambodia and the Philippines.

In her opening speech, NA Chairwoman Ngan said the 1992 Constitution of Vietnam has contributed greatly to the country’s renewal but, given the rapidly changing situation in the country and the world today, the Constitution needs to be supplemented and revised to be relevant to the new context.

The Vietnamese NA has defined seven constitutional issues that need revising in the near future with the main focus on amending content related to the organization of the State, she said.

International experts highlighted the need to revamp the organization of the State apparatus, saying that studying models of State powers in other countries will be a useful source of reference for perfecting the state of Vietnam.

They also shared experiences in organizing State powers in the constitutions of some other countries and discussed mechanisms for sharing control and power in Europe, Asia and Germany.

* Bangkok hosts conference on cooperatives

A Vietnamese delegation headed by the Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Dang Khoa is attending the 9th Asia-Pacific Cooperative Ministers’ Conference in Bangkok from Feb. 27-29.

The Vietnamese delegation joined others from over 20 countries around the region, along with several international organisations including the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation.

Speaking at the conference, the President of the International Cooperative Alliance Pauline Green, cited the UN view that cooperatives improve the living standards of 50 percent of the world’s population.

She said the UN also recognises the role of the cooperative model in global socio-economic development over the past 180 years. Nearly 1 billion people now belong to cooperatives, generating a great number of jobs across the globe. They often help to prevent disputes, build communities, develop professional skills and help millions of people escape from poverty.

On the sidelines of the conference, the Vietnamese delegation met with the Malaysian delegation and discussed more bilateral cooperation, especially between the Vietnam Cooperative Alliance and the Cooperative College of Malaysia.

VNN/VOV/VNA