Day: September 27, 2022

Gillian Keegan, British Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, has expressed her belief that the Vietnam-UK comprehensive relationship will continue to grow in the next 50 years.

 

Speaking at a ceremony marking Vietnam’s National Day held by the Vietnamese Embassy in the UK on September 26, Keegan affirmed that the UK always welcomes students and businesses from the Southeast Asian nation.

 

She noted that bilateral trade increased 11% since the UK-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (UKVFTA) was signed in 2020, and the UK is working to boost two-way trade as the country aims to expand its trade ties in Indo-Pacific.

 

Expressing her delight at the establishment of a partnership in energy transition by the UK, Vietnam and the EU, Keegan said Vietnam is an important partner of the UK in cooperation in response to climate change.

 

In his remarks, Vietnamese Ambassador Nguyen Hoang Long recalled the day when President Ho Chi Minh delivered the Declaration of Independence, proclaiming the birth of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (now the Socialist Republic of Vietnam) on September 2, 1945, and reviewed achievements the country has recorded after 36 years of Doi Moi (Reform). The diplomat reiterated Vietnam’s commitment to becoming a good friend, a reliable partner and a responsible member of the international community, saying the country stands ready to join global efforts to promote peace, stability and friendship, towards a world of sustainable and inclusive development.

 

Long also highlighted developments in the Vietnam-UK strategic partnership over the past time, especially the UK visit by National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue last June.

 

The UK is one of the 10 biggest buyers of Vietnam, while the Southeast Asian nation is an important trade partner of the UK in ASEAN, he said, adding that a major programme with various trade, culture, education and tourism activities will be held in both Vietnam and the UK.

 

On this occasion, the Vietnamese Embassy launched a vote to select logo for the celebration of 50th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

The HCM City People’s Committee opened a contest for solutions and products in artificial intelligence (AI) applications until October 15.

 

The contest is organised by the city’s Department of Information and Communications in collaboration with the Department of Science and Technology, the Vietnam National University-HCM City, the HCM City Computer Association, Vietnam Software and its Services Association, and the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union’s chapter in HCM City.

 

It calls on the business community and residents to join hands to effectively implement the city’s digital transformation strategy.

 

According to Lam Dinh Thang, director of the city’s Department of Information and Communication, the contest aims to promote scientific research activities and innovative start-up projects in AI applications.

 

It encourages individuals and research groups at home and abroad to propose AI-powered solutions to help the city deal with problems of environment, education and health.

 

“AI-powered products and solutions being researched, deployed, and applied in the city are expected to be able to be widely applied in the future, contributing to the city’s AI application and development,” he said.

 

He hopes this year’s contest will receive the participation of information technology students, AI experts across the country, and overseas Vietnamese.

 

The contest’s two categories are the AI-Challenge and AI-Solution.

 

AI-Challenge seeks AI-based solutions for event retrieval from visual data.

 

AI-Solution looks for outstanding solutions and products based on artificial intelligence technologies in key socio-economic sectors such as production, business, transportation, finance, healthcare, education, tourism, agriculture, and serving the community.

 

A jury of experts and scientists from universities and associations will decide the winners.

 

All domestic and foreign individuals and organisations can register online by filling out a form at https://aichallenge.hochiminhcity.gov.vn/dang-ky, or at the Department of Information and Communications office No. 59 on Lý Tự Trọng Street in District 1.

 

The organisers are encouraging participants to attach files, photos, videos and links related to their work.

 

There will be three main prizes and extra prizes in each category. Each first prize is 50 million VND (2,100 USD), the second prize is 30 million VND (1,260 USD), while the third prize is 20 million VND (840 USD) and the consolation prize is 5 million VND (210 USD).

 

The number of prizes will be decided by the organising board and the judges.

 

Funding for the prizes will be mobilised from various sources.

 

The award ceremony is expected to be held in November.

 

More information is available at https://aichallenge.hochiminhcity.gov.vn/.a

 

In 2020, the contest attracted 217 teams and 528 contestants from 55 units participating in the AI-Challenge, and 39 products and solutions from 31 units participating in AI-Solution, with the prizes awarded totalling 365 million VND (15,320 USD).

 

Last year, it received entries of 330 teams and 1,098 contestants from more than 50 units at home and abroad, with prizes of 200 million VND (8,395 USD)./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

A favourable international environment is needed to promote trust and friendship among countries in order to achieve the effective the disarmament of the nuclear weapons, Ambassador Dang Hoang Giang, Vietnam’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, has said.

 

Addressing a meeting held by the UN General Assembly to mark International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons in New York on September 26, Giang emphasised international law observance, countries’ fulfillment of obligations and the implementation of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), and the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).

 

The global nuclear disarmament is a long-term goal of the UN which, however, will face headwinds, the ambassador noted.

 

Vietnam proposes intensifying dialogues and negotiations of international agreements on the reduction of nuclear weapons and fissile materials, Giang said, stressing the need to raise public awareness of catastrophic consequences of the weapons.

 

He also reiterated Vietnam’s consistent policy of supporting nuclear disarmament, towards the total elimination of the weapons, as well as the country’s commitment to seriously fulfilling its obligations under relevant treaties, including the NPT, the TPNW, the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty (CTBT), and the Southeast Asia Nuclear Weapon-Free Zone (SEANWFZ).

 

In his remarks, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres urged all states to use every avenue of dialogue, diplomacy and negotiation to ease tensions, reduce risk and eliminate the nuclear threat.

 

“I pledge to work closely with all member states to forge a new consensus around how we can collectively defuse these threats and achieve our shared goal of peace,” he said./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

 

The Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (Petrovietnam) has full capacity and advantages in offshore wind power development and in renewable energy projects in the future, held participants at a recent symposium on offshore wind power and hydrogen production from this energy source.

 

A report released at the event showed that offshore wind power and hydrogen will play an important role in the global energy structure and an indispensable solution for energy transition and reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.

 

In the future, the hydrogen industry and the global hydrogen market, including Vietnam, is predicted to develop fast in the period after 2030.

 

Commenting on the potential and development trend of the offshore wind power industry in Vietnam in the future, the World Bank held that Vietnam has the largest potential in the Southeast Asian region at 475 GW. The figure in the draft National Power Development Plan for the 2021 – 2030 period, with a vision towards 2045 (PDP VIII), is 207 GW.

 

The development of offshore wind power is of great significance for Vietnam because it can integrate the goals in socio-economic growth, energy security and industrialisation into with low carbon emission targets towards the goal of net zero emissions by 2050.

 

According to the PDP VIII, offshore wind power capacity will reach 7 GW and account for 4.8% of total power capacity by 2030 and 66.5 GW by 2045.

 

Participants underlined that PetroVietnam has great potential in offshore wind power development, with high financial capacity, favourable capital mobilisation with high credit ratings and easy access to green credit resources at low interest rates as well as other incentives from the Government and international financial institutions supporting the development of clean and green energy.

 

PetroVietnam and its member companies can promote their advantages in experience and human resources in designing, manufacturing and operating sea-based works to engage in the supply chain and the development of offshore wind power projects, enhancing the localisation rate of equipment, reducing the cost of electricity production in order to create a premise for the development of hydrogen energy in the future.

 

PetroVietnam has owned the infrastructure and experience that can be applied throughout the entire value chain from production to transportation, storage and use of hydrogen.

 

At the event, the Department of Electricity and Renewable Energy of PetroVietnam released a report on opportunities and challenges for wind power to develop together with the value chain.

 

The report analysed and clarified the offshore wind power market in the region and the world, and the structure of an offshore wind power project. It also gave specific evaluation of the capacity of Petrovietnam in the field of import and export, while proposing some solutions, recommendations on the roadmap and orientations in this field if Petrovietnam is allowed to operate in the area.

 

Concluding the event, Chairman of PetroVietnam’s Board of Directors Hoang Quoc Vuong reiterated the direction from Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh during his working session with the firm on September 11, asking the PetroVietnam, as a leading economic and energy group of the country, to play the pioneering role in guiding the development of the renewable energy industry.

 

Vuong affirmed that PetroVietnam boasts high potential, strength and capacity in manufacturing equipment and experience in operating at sea, which prompts it to be active in building strategy and roadmap to boost offshore wind power and hydrogen development in a timely, suitable and effective manner amid the current fast and strong energy transition.

 

The PetroVietnam leader also reminded member companies to further improve their management capacity, enrich their experience, and enhance the quality of human resources to actively grasp all opportunities to promote the group to the leading position in the renewable energy industry./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

 

Vietnam and India hold great potential for cooperation in establishing supply chains following COVID-19, which has seriously affected both economies over the past two years due to disruptions in regional and global supply chains, according to Indian analysts.

 

India is trying to establish new supply chains to overcome the consequences of COVID-19 and Vietnam is considered a partner of potential, said Sanjaya Baru, former Secretary General of Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

 

According to the Center for the World Trade Organisation and International Trade at the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Vietnam is an attractive market due to being a signatory to a number of free trade agreements.

 

“India and Vietnam can work together on establishing new supply chains so that Indian exports to Southeast Asia and East Asia can be enhanced through joint ventures,” Mr. Baru said.

 

At the Vietnam-India Business Forum in New Delhi last December, the two countries signed 12 cooperation agreements in various fields, including human resources training in information technology, oil and gas processing and energy, and trade and investment promotion activities.

 

Meanwhile, Jagannath Panda, Head of the Stockholm Center for South Asian and Indo-Pacific Affairs, described Vietnam as an important country in Southeast Asian and Indian supply chain networks.

 

He lauded Vietnam-India relations, which have been progressing well and developed into a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2017.

 

A turning point in relations was the initiation of India’s Look East policy in 1991, aiming to cultivate extensive economic and strategic relations with Southeast Asian countries, according to Amitendu Palit, Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of South Asian Studies under the National University of Singapore.

 

The success of the Look East policy encouraged India to make it more action-oriented, resulting in India’s Act East policy, which was announced in 2014.

 

These policies have made India become much more outward looking, Mr. Palit said, adding that its relations, particularly economic partnerships with Southeast Asia, have expanded rapidly.

 

ASEAN and India elevated their relationship to a strategic partnership in 2012 on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the ASEAN-India Dialogue Relations.

 

In the context of economic globalisation and regional integration, the two sides have encouraged further cooperation in support of sub-regional development within the frameworks of Mekong-Ganga Cooperation (MGC).

 

At the 19th consultation meeting on economic cooperation between ASEAN and India in Cambodia on September 16, participants called on the two sides to forge collective action in securing robust supply chain connectivity to maintain the flow of essential goods and services.

 

Within the relationship between ASEAN and India, relations between India and Vietnam have always enjoyed a very special position, Mr. Palit said.

 

“There are a lot of commonalities between the two countries,” he added. “Both have had challenges with poverty and unemployment, and now also face difficulties from the COVID-19 pandemic.”

 

Despite the serious impact of COVID-19, Vietnam-India trade recorded impressive growth in 2021, surpassing 13 billion USD for the first time, up 36.5 percent compared to 2020, according to the General Department of Vietnam Customs.

 

Mr. Palit suggested that Vietnam and India look closely at the possibilities for cooperation through a large number of supply chains.

 

“What I have in mind is a large number of products and supply chains making up our production networks, where countries and businesses come together to cooperate,” he explained.

 

He believes the two countries can discover complementarities in a number of fields, such as agriculture, chemicals, and textile and garment, and more advanced endeavours like artificial intelligence.

 

According to Indian analysts, following the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a lot of focus on Vietnam and India, as both countries are critical economic zones for new supply chain connections.

 

They highlighted Vietnam’s strategic location and its crucial role in India’s Indo-Pacific vision, which sees the region as essentially a free and open economic area with the protection of sea lines of communication.

 

The analysts said both Vietnam and India can complement each other in the Indo-Pacific supply chain network./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency

 

Vietnam’s economy is expected to grow by 7.2% in 2022, on the back of a strong rebound in domestic demand and continued solid performance by export-oriented manufacturing, according to the World Bank East Asia and Pacific Economic Update, October 2022.

 

The economy rebounded strongly from COVID-19-related lockdowns in the third quarter of 2021, expanding by 6.4% in the first half of 2022, the report said.

 

The WB attributed the rebound to a recovery of exports and the release of pent-up demand following the removal of COVID-19-related mobility restrictions and, more recently, the gradual return of foreign tourists.

 

In the medium to long term, achieving Vietnam’s goal to become an upper-middle income economy will depend on transitioning to a productivity and innovation-led growth model based on a more efficient use of productive, human, and natural capital, the bank said.

 

The WB forecast that growth in the region is projected to decelerate from 7.2 percent in 2021 to 3.2 percent in 2022, which is about two percentage points slower than was expected in April 2022.

 

Potential output in the region is now projected to expand 4.6% year-on-year over the 2022-2030 period, down from 6.5% in the decade preceding the pandemic.

 

According to a forecast by the WB in April, East Asian and Pacific countries can achieve an economic growth of 5% in 2022./.

 

Source: Vietnam News Agency