Director of the Pukyong National University Kim Young-seop granted an Honorary Doctorate Degree of Politics to Chairwoman of the Vietnamese National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan during a ceremony in Busan city, the Republic of Korea (RoK), on December 5. 

Chairwoman of the Vietnamese National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan (middle) at the event

Speaking at the ceremony, Kim said NA Chairwoman Ngan has contributed to fostering Vietnam-RoK ties not only in legislation and politics, but also in education, labour, investment, and trade. 

He expressed his belief that with her excellent brainpower and leadership, the top Vietnamese legislator will help to inspire future talents. 

Kim hoped that Vietnam and the RoK will work closely together on talent training, contributing to the common development of Asia and bilateral friendship. 

The NA Chairwoman it is a great honour to receive the distinction, saying that it is a vivid symbol of the Vietnam-RoK friendship and all-around collaboration over the past 26 years since the establishment of diplomatic ties, including in education and training. 

Following the ceremony, Chairwoman Ngan talked with Vietnamese students who are studying at the Pukyong National University. 

She said that over the past more than three decades, Vietnam has made great achievements in politics-diplomacy, socio-economy, and national defence-security. From its humble beginning as an underdeveloped country with a low average income per capita, Vietnam has become a middle-income country, Ngan said.

This year, Vietnam’s economic scale surpassed 240.5 billion USD with a total import-export turnover exceeding 475 billion USD, she said, adding that the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 6.81 percent in 2017 and the figure is expected to reach 6.7-7 percent in 2018. 

Hailing the RoK as an important partner, the largest foreign investor, the second largest supplier of official development assistance (ODA), and the second largest trade partner of Vietnam, the top legislator said the country is shifting to a new economic growth model and restructuring its economy. 

According to the top legislator, Vietnam is focusing on three strategic breakthroughs, including refining a market economy mechanism with priority given to creating a fair competition environment, building a synchronous infrastructure for economic growth, and basic,  comprehensive educational reform. 

Vietnam has actively and proactively deployed a foreign policy of openness, diversification, and multilateralisation of international relations, she said, adding that the Party, State, parliamentary, and people-to-people diplomacy have brought about important results, she said. 

Ngan added that Vietnam has formed diplomatic ties with 185 countries worldwide, including two comprehensive strategic partners, 13 strategic partners, and 11 comprehensive partners. Bilateral economic, trade, and investment ties with more than 220 countries and territories have continued to grow. 

Vietnam is now an official member of over 70 international and regional organisations, and a number of new-generation free trade agreements, she said, adding that Vietnam-RoK ties are at their peak with growing political trust, regular visits by high-ranking lawmakers, and valued meetings on the sidelines of international conferences and multilateral forums. 

There are about 120 flights between the two countries per week, which have yet to meet travel demands of their people. Meanwhile, there are some 190,000 citizens of each nation living, working and studying in the other country.

As Vietnam is facing rapid population aging and has passed the golden era of population and labour, Ngan asked the Vietnamese students to make greater efforts in their studies and contribute to the homeland upon return. 

The NA Chairwoman urged them to offer mutual support in studies and daily life, abide by the laws of the host country, and serve as a bridge to promote the bilateral friendship. 

On the occasion, Ngan also answered students’ questions about the State’s policy in attracting excellent students and start-ups.–VNA