2024 Friendship Dialogue offers chance to learn from other nations

Phan Van Mai, Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee

Several foreign leaders in attendance offered advice to Ho Chi Minh City as it tries to increase the proportion of the city's high-tech industries from 23 per cent of the city's total GDP to 40 per cent by 2030.

According to Komura Masahiro, Japan's Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Vietnam is a promising destination for Japanese enterprises, and the two countries already boast strong cooperation in green and digital transformation.

"There are currently more than 2,000 Japanese companies operating in Ho Chi Minh City, the highest number in a city outside of Japan. The city has attracted investors because of its consumer market, with major Japanese retailers such as AEON and UNIQLO increasing their presence here," said Masahiro.

"We will continue to cooperate with Ho Chi Minh City to develop human resources by offering students the chance to study and work in Japan, especially in digital and green transformation," he added.

Kim Young-hwan, Governor of Chungcheongbuk in South Korea, said, "Chungcheongbuk has experience in building a semiconductor industry centre. We are continuously expanding industrial complexes to meet the growing demand for establishing high-tech companies," he said, adding that about $32 billion had been poured into the locality since last year.

"The development of relations between cities around the world is increasingly important. New policies are implemented in cities when public-private cooperation produces sustainable results," said Stefano Lo Russo, Mayor of Torino in Italy.

Torino has a long history of being a centre for international innovation for the automotive industry and is now transitioning towards electric vehicles. Torino is also host to many aerospace firms and several universities supplying graduates to professions in several science and technology fields.

"Torino's industrial and ecological transformation has been possible thanks to the continuous dialogue between the government, businesses, and universities. Ho Chi Minh City is a large, vibrant metropolis that faces many sustainable development challenges, so cooperation and an exchange of ideas between our two cities can provide solutions and create opportunities for mutual development," he added.

ACCA Asia Pacific Dialogue raises conversations on a sustainable future The ACCA Asia Pacific Dialogue 2024 held in Hanoi on May 28-29 aims to foster a platform for innovative thinking and strategic dialogue among key stakeholders in the accounting and finance sector, focusing on sustainable finance, digital transformation, and regulatory developments, reflecting the most pressing trends and challenges in the region.

2024 Global Trade Trends conference held in Ho Chi Minh City Citi organised the 2024 Global Trade Trends conference in Ho Chi Minh City on September 5, offering an opportunity for experts to gather and discuss emerging trade and supply chain trends.

Policy dialogue aims at driving sustainable growth The Vietnam Business Forum (VBF), in collaboration with Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, will host a dialogue under the theme: “Driving Sustainable Growth: Optimising Economic Ecosystems, Technology, and Energy” on September 18.