On the basis of good cooperation between Vietnam and Canada, in recent years, Hanoi has been intensifying cooperation with the localities of Canada to exchange, learn experience and enhance the exploitation of potential and strengths of each other.
Nguyen Duc Chung, Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee
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Remarkable figures
According to Chairman Chung, particularly, economic cooperation with Canada has always been the focus of Hanoi through specific activities. On January 16, 2017, the Hanoi government in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Embassy of Canada to Vietnam co-hosted the "Meeting Canada" event under the theme "Strengthening the partnership between Canada and Vietnam for sustainable development."
The meeting was an opportunity for leaders of local governments, Vietnamese businesses and Canadian partners in Vietnam to meet, exchange and expand their cooperation in many fields, especially economic, trade and investment, to improve business efficiency of enterprises and to contribute to improve the investment environment, and the Provincial Competitiveness Index (PCI) of Hanoi.
Canada is currently the 22nd largest country with respect to foreign direct investment in Hanoi. There are 22 direct investment projects from Canada with total registered capital of US$59.3 million. Investment projects mainly focus on services, technical science, education and trading.
Currently, there are five representative offices of Canadian businesses licensed to establish in Hanoi. The Canadian Representative Offices specialize in fields such as pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, industrial machinery and equipment in the textile, oil and gas exploration and production.
Regarding foreign policy, the city has also promoted exchanges of leaders of the city to enhance mutual understanding. In June 2017, a Hanoi delegation led by Standing Deputy Secretary of the Municipal Party Committee Ngo Thi Thanh Hang paid a working visit to Toronto, Ontario.
In return, later that year, a Canadian delegation led by Kathleen Wynne, Premier of Ontario, together with many Canadian businesses visited Hanoi to find opportunities for cooperation in Vietnam in general and Hanoi in particular.. During the visit, the premier of Ontario met and worked with Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee Nguyen Duc Chung. At the meeting, the premier of Ontario affirmed that the Ontario government was ready to support Hanoi in all areas, especially education and training. Representatives of the two localities also expressed their interest in strengthening the role of the two governments in promoting business cooperation more positively and actively; at the same time, they agreed to regularly exchange delegations and officials between Hanoi and Ontario.
“The success of these visits not only realizes the commitment to promote cooperation, but also shows the efforts of both sides to enhance the cooperation substantively and effectively,” Nguyen Duc Chung confirmed.
Clear objectives and plans for cooperation
In the time to come, Nguyen Duc Chung said that Hanoi sets clear objectives and plans to promote cooperation with foreign partners, including Canada, in order to mobilize efficiently resources for investment, to develop socio-economic of the capital in a sustainable development manner.
With respect to investment, Hanoi aims to attract foreign investment and selects quality projects which potentially put out high value added products from large-scale transnational corporations; to encourage support industriesprojects, projects of hi-tech and biotechnologies using modern and eco-friendly technologies, projects in fields of information technology, agricultural development, clean and safe food; infrastructure development, high quality human resources training, research and development, financial services, banking, etc.
With regard to Canada, Hanoi is determined to strengthen the investment promotion activities such as consulting-surveying, holding conferences, seminars, exhibitions to introduce Hanoi’s investment policy to the business community of Canada; to attract investment from Canada in the fields in which Hanoi wishes to develop and Canada has strengths such as: health, agriculture, high technology application, finance-banking, etc.
The city will assist and facilitate Canadian investment projects in the city, through these companies, and promote the image of Hanoi's investment environment to potential Canadian investors.
Concerning trade, the city will coordinate with the Embassy of Canada and trade promotion organizations to develop and implement activities to boost and support enterprises in Hanoi, including organizing and receiving Canadian business delegations to Hanoi to trade at exhibitions; holding seminars and enhancing business contacts between Hanoi and Canadian enterprises and sending Hanoi business delegations to attend exhibitions in Canada.
On the tourism aspect, Hanoi actively participates in traditional cultural programs held in Hanoi or Canada to enhance cultural exchanges between the two countries.
“Accordingly, on the basis of good relations between the two countries, the cooperation between Hanoi and other localities in Canada promises to make significant progress in the future,” Chung emphasized.
