Chairman of Nghe An Provincial People's Committee received a delegation of the British Deputy Foreign Minister
(Baonghean.vn) - At the meeting, the two sides discussed important issues, wishing to continue to tighten and further expand the circle of cooperation in various fields.
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| On the morning of January 16, the delegation led by Ms. Heather Wheeler - Member of Parliament, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the UK, had a meeting and paid a courtesy call to the leaders of Nghe An province. Accompanying them was Mr. Gareth Ward - British Ambassador to Vietnam. In the photo: Comrade Thai Thanh Quy presented flowers to welcome the delegation. Photo: Thu Giang |
Strengthening investment, tourism and education connections
Speaking at the welcoming ceremony on the occasion of the first official visit of Ms. Heather Wheeler - Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the UK to Nghe An, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee Thai Thanh Quy briefly informed about some general features of natural conditions, socio-economic situation and cooperation with the UK of Nghe An province in recent times.
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| Receiving and working with the delegation, on the side of Nghe An province, there were comrades: Thai Thanh Quy - Alternate member of the Party Central Committee, Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee, Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee; Le Ngoc Hoa - Vice Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee; representatives of leaders of a number of departments, branches and localities. Photo: Thu Giang |
He recalled that in May 2014, with the help and introduction of the Vietnamese Embassy in the United Kingdom, Nghe An province sent a delegation to visit and work with the Newhaven town government on signing a memorandum of understanding and establishing a relationship between Vinh City and Newhaven, and at the same time organized an investment promotion conference for Nghe An province in London.
In 2019, Nghe An's export turnover to the UK reached 10.57 million USD with main items: textiles, processed fruits, fruit juice, coffee, rice, paving stones, cooking oil... Import turnover from the UK reached 5.29 million USD with main items: machinery, equipment, tools, other spare parts, chemicals, textile raw materials, footwear, rubber products...
To date, Nghe An has 2 foreign investment projects in cooperation with the UK, of which 1 project has been transferred to a domestic enterprise. In 2016, the UK Foreign Office sponsored about 5 billion VND to the province through the Blue Dragon Children's Organization (Australia), implementing the Sunflower House project, a shelter for women and children who are victims of human trafficking...
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| Comrade Thai Thanh Quy introduced the potential and strengths of Nghe An. Photo: Thu Giang |
In discussions with the delegation, the leaders of Nghe An province made a number of proposals and recommendations to expand bilateral cooperation. In particular, in the field of trade and investment, the province requested the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and members to introduce UK businesses and investors to Nghe An to survey the possibility of investment cooperation in various fields, aiming to develop products in the fields of agriculture, high-tech agriculture, supporting industry, mechanical engineering, mining, agricultural processing, tourism services, healthcare, sports, etc.
In addition, the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee also hopes that the UK will support connecting British businesses and investors in the tourism sector to Nghe An - a land with rich and diverse terrain, a land of talented people - to survey and share experiences in business methods and tourism activities.
In the field of education and training, the province proposed to expand bilateral cooperation programs, organize English training courses for Nghe An teachers, support the construction of an international English certification testing center in Vinh City, serving the needs of the North Central provinces.
Desire to strengthen bilateral cooperation
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| Ms. Heather Wheeler - Member of Parliament, UK Foreign Secretary talks with Chairman of Nghe An Provincial People's Committee. Photo: Thu Giang |
Thanking the Nghe An provincial government for their hospitality, the representative of the delegation, Ms. Heather Wheeler - Deputy Secretary of State for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office of the UK, said that the UK has and will continue to wish to strengthen the cooperative relationship with Vietnam in general and Nghe An in particular in all fields. Especially in the context of 2020, when Vietnam assumes an important role as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council and the rotating ASEAN Chair, Ms. Wheeler hopes that Vietnam will support and maintain cooperation with the UK after Brexit, the process of the UK leaving the European Union (EU), is officially completed.
Sending condolences on the recent tragedy of 39 Vietnamese victims in Essex, UK, the British Deputy Foreign Minister also expressed his gratitude for the close and prompt cooperation of the two governments, especially Nghe An province, to resolve the case and bring the victims' bodies back to Vietnam.
Also at the meeting, responding to the proposal from Nghe An province, British Ambassador to Vietnam Gareth Ward discussed further about the UK's cooperation plans in the fields of education, training and tourism with Vietnam in the coming time.
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| Provincial leaders presented souvenirs to members of the working delegation. Photo: Thu Giang |
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| The delegation took souvenir photos with provincial leaders and some departments, branches and localities of Nghe An. Photo: Thu Giang |
