On the back of a broad strategic partnership and strong trust between the two governments and peoples, the Vietnamese government wants Japan to be not only the top but also the best investor in the country, according to Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue.

Deputy Prime Minister Vuong Dinh Hue at the event. Source: VGP.

Vietnam gives priority to improving national competitiveness and its business model, said Hue at the launching ceremony of a series of conferences and forums in economy, tourism and labor between Vietnam and Japan on January 13 in Da Nang.

In 2020, Vietnam targets an increase of 10 places in the World Bank's business environment ranking and realize the goal of having one million enterprises by the end of the year, Hue continued.

Nikai Toshihiro, Secretary-General of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party of Japan (LDP) and chairman of the Japan – Vietnam Friendship Parliamentary Alliance, along with 1,100 Japanese government officials and enterprises also attended the event.

Echoing Toshihiro’s view that the Vietnam – Japan relations are at its best moment, Hue said this is a rare event which creates motivation for substantial cooperation in trade, economy, tourism and labor between Vietnam and Japan, particularly between the Northeast Asian country and Vietnam’s central region.

Overview of the event. Source: VGP.

Hue added both Vietnam and Japan support free trade. Despite unfavorable global economic conditions in 2019, Vietnam achieved positive results with high GDP growth, stable macro-economic conditions, and low inflation.

Additionally, Vietnam received 18 million international tourists, while 2019 is the second consecutive year that Vietnam was named as Asia’s top destination. The country attained a trade surplus for the third consecutive year and was among the top 25 countries in trade turnover.

Nikai Toshihiro, chairman of the Japan – Vietnam Friendship Parliamentary Alliance. Source: VGP.

According to Hue, Vietnam is submitting the revised the Law on Investment and the Law on Enterprises to the National Assembly, emphasizing foreign invested sector is an essential part of the economy.

The government would continue to promote and ensure the long-term development of the sector, allowing it to compete fair and square with other economic sectors, stressed Hue.

Hue added the state respects and protects lawful rights of investors, while harmonizing the benefits of all parties involved.

As Japan has opened its market for Vietnamese laborers, Vietnam expected closer cooperation between the two countries in supporting Vietnamese laborers in Japan, added Hue. Once the laborers return home, they would become the main labor force in Japanese firms in Vietnam.

Moreover, Hue said tourism remains an untapped potential sector for cooperation, as only 900,000 Japanese tourists came to Vietnam in 2019, equivalent to one fifth of South Korean visitors in the same year.

On the same day, Hue and Toshihiro attended the launch of Vietjet Air’s new flight routes from Hanoi, Danang, and Ho Chi Minh City to Nagoya, Fukuoka, and Kagoshima in 2020.