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| Mr. Vo Van Hoan, Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee (L), congratulates Mr. Roy Kho Ngee Seng, Consul General of Singapore to Ho Chi Minh City. (Photo: VNA) |
So confirmed Vo Van Hoan, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee, during a meeting to celebrate the 57th anniversary of the Singaporean National Day (August 9), organized by the Singaporean Consulate General in the city, on August 15.
On behalf of the city’s leaders to congratulate Singapore on its National Day, Mr. Hoan expressed his impression of Singapore's development over the past 60 years. Singapore has now become one of the world's leading developed countries and is a model of pioneering spirit that always dares to dream, look forward, seek new solutions and opportunities.
He emphasized that, on the basis of the positive development and achievements of the relationship between the two countries, the relationship between Ho Chi Minh City and Singapore has achieved many good results. Ho Chi Minh City and Singapore are geographically close, share similar cultural values, and have potential for complementary cooperation in many fields.
According to Mr. Hoan, Singapore is currently the largest investor in Ho Chi Minh City and has been the city's second largest trading partner for many successive years. Since 1988, Singapore has had more than 1,487 projects registered in the city with a total capital of about USD11.9 billion. In 2021, despite being affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the total two-way trade turnover between Ho Chi Minh City and Singapore will still reach nearly USD8 billion.
In addition, cooperation in education, civil servant training, urban planning, tourism, and cultural exchange has been maintained regularly by the two sides. Ho Chi Minh City and Singapore have negotiated and signed many memorandums of understanding on cooperation in the fields of education, urban and architecture, demonstrating their determination to promote cooperation, as well as their vision for the future.
Speaking at the ceremony, Mr. Roy Kho Ngee Seng, Singaporean Consul General to Ho Chi Minh City, shared about the socio-economic development situation of Singapore after the COVID-19 pandemic; and emphasized that, since Singapore and Vietnam established diplomatic relations, the bilateral relationship has always been good and developed strongly in all fields, from politics and economy to culture, defence and education.
According to Mr. Roy Kho Ngee Seng, Singapore was the largest FDI investor in Vietnam in the past 2 years and in the first half of this year. In the first 6 months of this year, Singapore is still the largest investor in Vietnam with FDI capital of more than USD4.1 billion, accounting for 29.5% of total FDI into Vietnam. This is a clear demonstration of the trust that Singaporean businesses have in Vietnam and also shows the deep friendship between the two countries and two peoples.
Sharing about the relationship between Singapore and Ho Chi Minh City, Mr. Roy Kho Ngee Seng said, as a major economic center, Ho Chi Minh City has always been a promising destination for businesses. Singapore wants to expand its business in Vietnam. As of July this year, Singapore is the leading investor with 70 new projects, total capital up to USD116 million. Singapore also had the highest number of projects with adjusted registered capital in Ho Chi Minh City in the first 7 months of the year, reaching USD1.14 billion and accounting for 80.8% of the adjusted registered capital.
Besides, according to the Singaporean Consulate General, in the past time, Singapore and Ho Chi Minh City, the southern localities have cooperated effectively in the fields of digital economy and green economy; expressing his belief that the cooperation between Singapore and Ho Chi Minh City in the field of digital economy and combating climate change will bring many development opportunities and benefits to the business communities and people of both sides./.