Opening of the 2nd Overseas Vietnamese Conference

On the morning of September 27, in Ho Chi Minh City, the second conference of overseas Vietnamese with the theme "Vision to 2020 - Overseas Vietnamese community integrates and develops with the country" organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese opened.

Attending the opening ceremony were Politburo member and Permanent member of the Secretariat Le Hong Anh; Vice President Nguyen Thi Doan; Chairman of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Huynh Dam, along with leaders of central and local ministries, agencies, Vietnamese representative agencies abroad and nearly 1,000 overseas Vietnamese delegates.

Overseas Vietnamese return to their homeland to celebrate Tet and participate in the television program "Spring in the homeland." Illustrative photo. (Photo: Nguyen Khang/VNA).

On behalf of the leaders of the Party, State and Vietnam Fatherland Front, Standing member of the Secretariat Le Hong Anh warmly welcomed and highly appreciated the presence of delegates and distinguished guests at this important meeting.

This is a vivid expression of the will and aspirations of more than 4 million Vietnamese people abroad to unite and strive for the goal of building a strong community and turning towards the homeland.

Mr. Le Hong Anh emphasized the deep awareness that more than 4 million Vietnamese people abroad are not only a part of the flesh and blood of the Vietnamese people but also a valuable resource for the cause of industrialization and modernization of the country, an important bridge in Vietnam's international relations. Up to now, our Party and State have always paid great attention to the work for Vietnamese people abroad.

Since the first Overseas Vietnamese Conference, many policies and guidelines have been issued or revised and improved to meet the immediate interests of overseas Vietnamese. Overseas Vietnamese mobilization has been actively implemented in many forms and with rich content, linked to major political and social events of the country, helping people to become more and more attached to the country.

The Standing Secretariat also said that compared to the needs and expectations of overseas Vietnamese as well as the requirements of the country's development tasks in the new situation, there is still much work to be done.

Reality over the past time shows that overseas Vietnamese in some places still do not have a truly secure life, their legal status is not stable; the need to preserve and promote cultural identity and national traditions, including maintaining the Vietnamese language, is becoming extremely urgent; the work of building and developing associations faces many difficulties, the cohesion in some community areas is not high; a small number of overseas Vietnamese, due to lack of information or incorrect information, still have words and actions that go against the interests of the community and the nation.

Many policies related to the vital interests of overseas Vietnamese, such as nationality, business investment, home purchase and ownership, etc., still have problems in implementation and lack specific policies and measures to call for and create favorable conditions to support overseas intellectuals to return to work in the country.

From the above facts, Mr. Le Hong Anh suggested that the conference should assess more fully and realistically the situation and development trends of the Vietnamese community abroad, the effectiveness of policies and guidelines for overseas Vietnamese, in order to serve the research and determination of community building strategies to participate with the Party and State in policies and guidelines related to this work, thereby building programs and projects to mobilize the community in the short and long term.

On the other hand, on the basis of promoting the spirit of democracy and construction in discussion, focus on clarifying the difficulties, advantages, potentials, and orientations in building and developing the community in relation to the requirements of integration and development of the country.

According to Mr. Le Hong Anh, it is necessary to identify this Conference as an important political activity, a forum for delegates to discuss specific measures to promote the role of overseas Vietnamese in socio-economic development, promote people-to-people diplomacy and international integration of the country as proposed by the 11th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam.

Speaking at the conference, Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh affirmed that the Party, State and people of Vietnam always appreciate the precious sentiments of overseas Vietnamese towards the country and always consider overseas Vietnamese as an inseparable part of the Vietnamese ethnic community. The Government has issued many mechanisms and policies to support them.

Many legal documents have been developed and issued to facilitate overseas Vietnamese in the areas of nationality, immigration, residence, housing and land purchase, etc. Citizen protection and support for the activities of Vietnamese organizations and individuals abroad have received more attention than before.

However, the Government also recognizes that these policies have not yet fully met the aspirations and wishes of many people. The Government will continue to listen to the opinions and contributions of overseas Vietnamese to have new policies that meet their aspirations. The Party and State of Vietnam always encourage and create the best conditions for overseas Vietnamese to contribute more to the country.

According to the report of the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese, the Vietnamese community abroad continues to increase in number and expand its residential area.
To date, there are more than 4.5 million Vietnamese people living, working and studying in 103 countries and territories. The community is increasingly stable, integrated into the host society, and has significant economic and intellectual potential.

Every year, about 500,000 overseas Vietnamese return home, including many experts and intellectuals who come to work and many who come to explore investment and business opportunities.

Currently, there are over 3,500 domestic enterprises established or invested by overseas Vietnamese with a total registered capital of about 8.4 billion USD. Remittances sent home increase by an average of 10-15% per year, reaching over 9 billion USD in 2011, making Vietnam one of the 10 countries receiving the most remittances; in the first 6 months of 2012, it reached about 6.4 billion USD, making an important contribution to stabilizing the country's balance of payments and economy.

On this occasion, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also awarded the medal "For the cause of working with Vietnamese people abroad" to Ms. Truong My Hoa, former Vice President and former President of the Fund to Support Vietnamese People Abroad.

After the opening program, this afternoon, September 27, 4 parallel thematic conferences also took place, including "The future of the community - Issues of economic integration and development", "Cultural identity and national traditions - Motivation for community solidarity, attachment to the country", "Overseas Vietnamese intellectuals with the cause of industrialization and modernization - From potential to reality" and "Overseas Vietnamese entrepreneurs for the future of the community and the country".

During the conference program, which runs until September 30, overseas Vietnamese delegates will also participate in exchanges at a number of typical economic, cultural and information establishments in Ho Chi Minh City and the Southeast provinces./.

(According to VNA) - LT