Vietnam to charm japanese investors
HANOI - Vietnam's Prime Minister Phan Van Khai has assured the visiting
speaker of Japan's house of representatives Tamisuke Watanuki that
Vietnam will improve its business environment to attract more Japanese
investment.
Vietnam has been praised by the international community for its political
and social stability, and hopes to capitalize on this advantage to make
business and investment more attractive, he said. He expressed his
appreciation for Japan's assistance to Vietnam's development efforts. He
said that even though Japan had cut 10 percent of its overall official
development assistance (ODA) due to economic difficulties, it promised to
increase its ODA to Vietnam by 8 percent.
Khai pointed out that Japanese ODA and aid has, over the past few years,
been valuable in building major development projects - especially in poverty
reduction, hunger elimination, rural development, training and technology
transfer. He said that in addition to the growth of diplomatic ties, trade and
investment has also been rising steadily. Vietnam exports around US$2.5
billion a year to Japan and the latter has become the largest investor in
Vietnam, with over $4 billion in 330 projects.
Watanuki said that the two nations had many similarities: Both people are
peace-loving, industrious, intelligent at work and academically dedicated.
This year Japan is determined to offer Vietnam a larger amount of ODA
and aid despite its own difficulties, he said. He hopes that Vietnam will
further improve its business environment in order to attract more investors
from Japan and elsewhere.
The Japanese speaker also held talks with National Assembly Chairman
Nguyen Van An about measures to promote ties between Vietnam's
National Assembly and Japan's House of Representatives. An told his
visitor that the two parliaments should coordinate more closely and
regularly exchange experiences in law-making and other activities.
Vietnam wishes to develop bilateral and multilateral ties with Japan on a
durable and mutually beneficial basis, he said. An also told Watanuki that
he hoped Japan will assist Vietnam's efforts to join the World Trade
Organization (WTO).
Watanuki said that Japan accorded top priority to boosting ties with
Southeast Asian nations including Vietnam. For his part, he would support
the Japanese government in providing assistance and strengthening
cooperation with Vietnam for mutual benefit, Watanuki said.
Asia Times - January 17, 2002.
Vietnam envoy lauds Japan assistance
For Vu Dung, Vietnam's ambassador to Japan since January 2000,
Japan was an easy country to adapt to because of the nations'
similar values.
Both are hard working, friendly, and attach
importance to family and human relations,
Dung said during a visit Wednesday to The
Japan Times.
It is significant- Vu Dung , he said, that
despite Japan's economic problems, it has
remained the No. 1 ODA donor to
Vietnam since 1992. Currently, Japan's
ODA accounts for 40 percent of all economic aid that Vietnam
receives.
The volume of Japan-Vietnam trade increased by 15 percent over
the last year, amounting to some 560 billion yen annually. Japan has
for a long time been Vietnam's biggest trading partner, Dung said.
While many countries were reluctant to invest in Vietnam following
the Asian crisis of 1997, Japanese investment recovered after
suffering only a small decline and actually increased 300 percent in
2001 from the previous year, he said.
Dung also noted that the number of Japanese visitors to Vietnam
has increased by 50 percent annually over the past two years.
"When I first came to Japan in January 2000, there were only four
flights a week from Kansai International Airport to Ho Chi Minh
City. Now there are also flights from Narita, and with the
inauguration of the Hanoi route in June, the total number of flights
will be as many as 21 a week."
The Japan Times - January 17, 2002.
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