Ho Chi Minh City hopes for cooperation with Spain in green growth, trade and investment

Vice Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Vo Van Hoan presents books about Ho Chi Minh City to Ms. Carmen Cano de Lasala, Spanish Ambassador to Vietnam. (Photo: hcmcpv.org.vn)

At the meeting, Vice Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Vo Van Hoan expressed his belief that Ambassador Carmen Cano de Lasala's visit to Ho Chi Minh City will be a premise for many new projects and cooperative activities between Spain and Vietnam, and with Ho Chi Minh City; helping the two sides better understand the untapped potential and opportunities for cooperation.

He noted that Vietnam and Spain are seeing good development in trade and investment relationships. Spain is one of Vietnam's leading partners in Europe. Vice Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Vo Van Hoan said that Spain is one of Ho Chi Minh City's important trade and investment partners. In 2023, two-way trade turnover between Ho Chi Minh City and Spain reached more than USD300 million, of which Ho Chi Minh City exported about USD180 million to Spain and imported about USD120 million from Spain.

Vice Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Vo Van Hoan said that Ho Chi Minh City and Spain still have a lot of room and potential to develop cooperative relations, especially in the fields that Ambassador Carmen Cano de Lasala proposed, such as green growth, trade, investment, people-to-people exchange and Spanish language training. He also noted that Ho Chi Minh City plans to build seven more urban railway lines and he hoped that Spain could participate in these projects.

On behalf of Ho Chi Minh City leaders, he invited Spain and its localities to participate in the Ho Chi Minh City Economic Forum held in Ho Chi Minh City in September 2024.

Spanish Ambassador to Vietnam Carmen Cano de Lasala expressed her impression of the dynamic development in Ho Chi Minh City, adding that Spain and Vietnam, including Ho Chi Minh City, have many similarities as well as challenges to promote cooperation in the future. Noting that Spanish businesses increasingly want to cooperate with Vietnam and Ho Chi Minh City, she proposed a number of areas that Spain can share experiences and promote cooperation with Ho Chi Minh City such as green growth, adaptation to climate change, high-speed railway development, and tourism development./.