Beijing, Tokyo and Seoul, the three metropolises in East Asia, are excellent examples for Hanoi to follow in adapting the legal capital to the sustainable development.

Vietnamese delegates at the Seoul Metropolitan Council office. Photo: The Hanoi Times

Led by Pham Qui Tien, Vice Chairman of the Hanoi People's Council, the Vietnamese delegation visited the three capitals of China, Japan and South Korea to exchange ideas on urban planning and development.

During an 11-day trip to the three cities in late August, the Hanoi delegates visited the Zhongguancun Science Park and Urban Planning Center in Beijing, the Tokyo Metro Training Center in Tokyo, and the Seoul Startup Hub in Seoul.

Beijing, Tokyo and Seoul are among the world's metropolises that have harmoniously integrated ancient buildings into modern landscapes.

Local authorities in Beijing said on August 22 that the city is drafting the capital city law, so they welcome and want to learn from Hanoi in this area.

Vice Chairman Tien said that the Capital Law will facilitate Hanoi to achieve sustainable growth, and he hoped to explore the practices and facts in the foreign cities, especially Beijing.

At the meeting, the two sides discussed issues related to the establishment of sub-municipal agencies, overall urban development and planning, development of public transport and intelligent transportation, and preservation of historical and cultural relics.

The People's Councils of the two cities also agreed to promote cooperation and increase people-to-people exchanges on the occasion of the 24th anniversary of Hanoi-Beijing relations next year.

Tokyo and Seoul

At the working meeting with Tokyo authorities on August 25, the Hanoi delegation was briefed on the structure and operation of Tokyo's administrative hierarchy and local self-government, as well as Tokyo's policies in socio-economic fields.

The Tokyo officials hoped that the results of the meeting would benefit Hanoi in its urban planning and strengthen city-to-city relations.

Pham Qui Tien, Deputy Chairman of the Hanoi People's Council, said that Tokyo's socio-economic standards have been promoted by appropriate policies, and that such policies will be of great value to Hanoi in developing its regulatory system.

Japan has long been known for its successful development of cities and public transport under the Transit Oriented Development (TOD) model, which is a good example for Hanoi as the Vietnamese capital seeks ways to expand the mass transit network.

On August 29, the delegation had a meeting with the Seoul Metropolitan Council led by Chairman Kim Hyeonki.

The Korean official said that the Hanoi delegates' trip strengthens the local-to-local partnership between Seoul and Hanoi and accelerates the two cities' cooperation in legislative work.

Chairman Kim also urged the two cities to ratify a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) soon to facilitate future cooperation activities.