Dear Readers of Hanoi Times,

On behalf of the Embassy of Malaysia, I would like to deliver our warmest wishes and greetings to all Vietnamese on this joyous and exciting festive season.

Dato’ Shariffah Norhana Syed Mustaffa, Ambassador of Malaysia to Vietnam. Photo: Embassy of Malaysia in Hanoi

We are at the beginning of the new year of 2021. How fast time flies. It has been an eventful and challenging 2020 for all of us. The Covid-19 outbreak has given the word ‘globalization’ a different level of meaning. Since Vietnam is the ASEAN chair in 2020, it is quite unfortunate that most of the meetings scheduled to be held in Vietnam were held virtually including the 36th and 37th ASEAN Summits. Vietnam ASEAN Chairmanship in 2020 is a historic event whereby for the first time since the establishment of ASEAN, almost all of the meetings hosted by Vietnam were held virtually. On that score, I would like to congratulate Vietnam for hosting such a successful and historic chairmanship.

Since the global pandemic had restricted leaders from both countries from undertaking their visits, there were only two high level visits from Malaysia to Vietnam in 2020 – the Working Visit of Malaysia Foreign Minister to attend the ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Retreat (AMM) in Nha Trang from January 15 – 17, 2020 and the Working Visit of Malaysia Defense Minister to attend the ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting Retreat (ADMM) in Hanoi on February 19, 2020. Soon after that, the Covid-19 pandemic broke out and hampered all other visits to and from Vietnam.

In the area of trade and investment, despite the current global economic uncertainty, I believe that both sides could improve the total trade figure and more activities can be done to further increase the trade volume and economic development of both sides. The total trade between the two countries from January to November 2020 was valued at US$10.51 billion. Vietnam remains as Malaysia’s 11th largest trading partner, while Malaysia was Vietnam’s 10th largest trading partner in the world. In terms of investment, Vietnam is considered as one of the most attractive destinations for foreign investors. With a thriving economy, the amount of foreign direct investment flowing into the Vietnam market has been constantly increasing in recent years. Malaysian investors are also keen for future collaboration with Vietnamese counterparts in areas of high potential, such as the halal sector, textiles, urban and rural development, education, renewable energy, industry 4.0 and agro-forestry-fishery industry involving food safety and food security.

In terms of people-to-people connections, Vietnam remains an attractive source market for the tourism industry both in terms of tourist arrivals, as well as, foreign exchange contribution. However, the tourism sector was one of the most affected industries since the outbreak of Covid-19. In 2020, Tourism Malaysia recorded a 24.7% decrease of Vietnamese tourist arrivals in the period of January to March 2020 (84,136) as compared to the same corresponding period in 2019 (380,067). Meanwhile, the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) also recorded a decrease of 19% of Malaysian tourist arrivals in the first three months of 2020 (116,221) as compared to the same corresponding period in 2019 (143,629).

Even as the threat of coronavirus still looms, I hope that the New Year 2021 will bring better health, peace and prosperity to all of us. I certainly look forward to my second “Tet” celebration this year. “Tet” holds significant meaning for the people of Vietnam and is one of the most important holidays in Vietnamese culture celebrating the arrival of the Lunar New Year. In Malaysia, we celebrate the Chinese New Year to commemorate the beginning of the Lunar New Year. Since Malaysia is a multiracial country, the Chinese New Year is also one of our major festivals that is included in our annual public holiday calendar.

In 2021, I believe that we should continue to strive and focus on recovering from the pandemic, reviving economic activities and improving people-to-people relations. 2020 has taught us to never take people and things for granted, as the worst can happen. We have survived challenges, we have thrived, we have adapted like never before. So, let’s make 2021 a better year for all of us.

On this occasion, I would like to join the people of Vietnam in welcoming the Year of the Buffalo and wish everyone who celebrates Tet a very Happy New Year. May the people of Vietnam have a long, healthy, happy and prosperous year in the Lunar Year of the Buffalo!

Chúc Mừng Năm Mới and Tết Nguyên Đán!