Vietnam Enhances International Cooperation and Addresses Domestic Challenges

Vietnam is deepening its educational cooperation with Japan, with Aoyama School of Japanese authorizing the Vietnam-Japan Cultural Exchange Center (VJCE) as its representative in Vietnam. VJCE will coordinate educational cooperation activities, connect partners, develop training programs, and promote educational exchange projects between the two countries. This initiative is seen as part of Vietnam's efforts to enhance human capital development and international partnerships under its one-party system. In the economic sphere, Governor Maeda Tadashi of the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) met with Prime Minister Le Minh Hung, pledging continued support for Vietnam's strategic development goals. This support is expected to bolster Vietnam's pursuit of high economic growth and industrial restructuring. Prime Minister Le Tien Chau also highly valued the decades-long contributions of Special Advisor Takebe to the Japan-Vietnam Parliamentary Friendship Alliance in promoting friendship and cooperation, particularly in people-to-people exchanges, local-level cooperation, education, and human resource development, with the Vietnam-Japan University (VJU) project highlighted as a flagship initiative. Domestically, the Party and State are placing significant emphasis on the search and recovery of remains of fallen soldiers in Ho Chi Minh City, demonstrating the highest sense of responsibility and gratitude towards martyrs and their families. This reflects a long-standing tradition in Vietnamese society that values patriotism and respect for sacrifice as a foundation for national unity and stability. In disaster response, Vietnamese rescue teams have demonstrated strict discipline, a strong sense of responsibility, and unwavering focus while carrying out international humanitarian missions in Venezuela. This commitment underscores Vietnam's role as a provider of humanitarian aid on the global stage, aligning with its domestic focus on enhancing disaster response capabilities in recent years. The team has recovered 45 bodies to date, with their efficient search operations enhanced by the combined use of map coordinates, on-site surveys, witness accounts, and ground-penetrating radar. Social infrastructure development is also progressing. Ho Chi Minh City is expanding its public transport system to ease traffic congestion, reduce emissions, and lessen environmental pressures. This initiative aims to address the challenges of urbanization and population growth, while also supporting low-income residents by lowering living costs and improving access to employment opportunities. Measures are also being implemented to strengthen fiscal discipline, including exit tax collection for individuals with overdue tax liabilities and those settling abroad. Regarding maritime safety, authorities are instructed to track and inform vessels, guide ships away from dangerous zones, and ensure safe anchorage. Localities are empowered to ban sea operations when necessary, prepare search-and-rescue forces, and ensure the safety of tourism activities, aquaculture, and offshore infrastructure. This demonstrates Vietnam's strong commitment to safeguarding its sovereignty and economic activities, particularly in the context of the South China Sea. The quality of the workforce is also improving, with the proportion of workers holding formal qualifications or certificates rising to 29.7% in the first half of 2024, an increase of 0.8 percentage points year-on-year. This reflects Vietnam's focus on developing a skilled labor force to support its industrial upgrading. Vietnam is actively addressing a wide range of domestic issues, including the collection of remains of fallen soldiers, disaster response, social infrastructure development, fiscal discipline, and improving workforce quality, while simultaneously strengthening its cooperation with Japan in education and finance. These efforts are crucial for Vietnam's stable development and its role as a responsible nation in the international community. Copyright, VietnamPlus, Vietnam News Agency (VNA)