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Photo: VGP
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PM Dung pointed to it as a key task in international integration and external economic work, which is of significant importance to the country’s economic growth and job creation.
He underscored that it is crucial to exploit traditional markets for the country’s key export products including rice, coffee, pepper, seafood, apparel and footwear, while making full use of existing free trade agreements and bilateral economic deals to bring Vietnamese goods to new markets.
In addition, PM Dung also suggested that the sector should focus on calling more foreign direct investment as well as ODA to the country for infrastructure building, poverty reduction and climate change response.
He also noted that the diplomacy sector should pay more attention to people-to-people exchange activities, cultural cooperation, education and training, and science and technology development.
The sector should exert more effort to improve work related to Vietnamese abroad, especially observing their legitimate rights and supporting them in integrating into the host society, he added.
The PM emphasised that international integration and external economic work should closely follow the guidelines of the Party and State on external relations, with the aim of strengthening peace and friendship to benefit the country, region and the world.
He said the work should contribute to creating favourable conditions and seizing all opportunities for national development, maintaining socio-economic stability and protecting national independence and sovereignty.
PM Dung hailed the sector for its many achievements over the past three years, saying that they positively contributed to the common success of the country.
According to Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh, in the difficult economic situation felt by the country and the world, many measures have been deployed to improve the efficiency of external economic activities.
Deputy PM Minh said, apart from key and traditional markets, external economic efforts have helped pave the way for exporters to enter in promising markets like Latin America, the Middle East and North Africa , contributing to promoting and attracting investment and creating jobs.
Deeper and broader international integration has also helped raise the country’s position and extend its development space, he said.
The Deputy PM held that the country’s economy has basically recovered and is growing. Trade turnover with major partners has increased over the past years, while trade deficit has been reduced and foreign direct investment has increased again since 2012.
ODA commitment by donors has also been maintained at a high figure. Meanwhile, foreign visitors have continued to surge, estimated to hit 7.3 million by the end of 2013. In the first 11 months of this year, Viet Nam also sent 78,000 workers abroad, he noted.
In the last two years, 14 more countries recognised Viet Nam ’s market economy regulations. Efforts have also been made to fight protectionism and discrimination in export markets to protect the legitimate rights of Vietnamese businesses, he added.
The joint meeting is the second of its kind to be organised by the Foreign Ministry and the Ministry of Industry and Trade.
The event has a significant meaning as the country is exerting efforts to realise the targets of the 2011-2020 socio-economic plan and strive to implement its strategy of combining macroeconomic stabilisation, economic restructuring and growth model reforms.
During the meeting, participants also listened to reports by the Ministry of Planning and Investment, Agriculture and Rural Development, and Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairs reviewing the socio-economic development for the 2011-2015 period./.
By Ngoc Van
