Vietnamese Ambassador to Korea: Many Korean tourists love pho

Vietnamese Ambassador to Korea Vu Ho exchanges information with the organizing committee of Vietnam Pho Festival 2024 - Photo: DUYEN PHAN

Within the framework of Vietnam Pho Festival 2024 held in Seoul, Korea, on October 4, the festival organizing committee had a working session at the Vietnamese Embassy in Korea.

Vietnamese Ambassador to Korea Vu Ho said the city's weather is at its most beautiful season of the year, with cool weather and changing leaves. This is also the peak season for international tourists to Seoul as well as many places in Korea.

Currently, the Vietnamese community in Korea is about 330,000 people, of which about 80,000 are Vietnamese brides. The international student community is also quite large with 80,000 students and more than 40,000 workers.

Along with that, trade and investment activities between the two countries are very bustling. Vietnam is the third largest trading partner of Korea with a total two-way trade turnover reaching nearly 80 billion USD by 2023, of which Korea has a trade surplus with Vietnam of 27.55 billion USD.

Import-export turnover between Vietnam and South Korea in the first 6 months of 2024 continued to recover, reaching 38.4 billion USD. Both countries are aiming for a new milestone of 100 billion USD in 2025.

"Registered investment capital from Korea also has a similar figure. Accumulated up to June 2024, the total direct investment from Korea to Vietnam reached nearly 87.5 billion USD. However, Vietnam is having a trade deficit with Korea, the two countries are trying to promote more balanced trade. Therefore, the Vietnam Pho Festival event of Tuoi Tre newspaper is a good opportunity to promote trade, especially for Vietnamese enterprises with strengths in agricultural products and processed foods," the ambassador commented.

Ambassador Vu Ho commented that pho has become an indispensable part of the cultural and social life of Vietnamese people. The promotion of pho is not only limited to the country but also spread internationally, including Korea.

"When it comes to pho, every Korean knows about it. In the first 6 months of the year, there were more than 2 million Korean visitors to Vietnam, not to mention the many Koreans living and working in Vietnam. Pho has become popular, so this is both an advantage and a challenge for the program. The program will have to tell about pho in a lively and attractive way," Ambassador Vu Ho added.

Journalist Tran Xuan Toan - deputy editor-in-chief of Tuoi Tre newspaper, member of the organizing committee of Vietnam Pho Festival 2024 - said that the Vietnamese delegation attending this year's festival has more than 100 people. Among them are many pho chefs of famous, long-standing brands, and food production and processing enterprises - Photo: DUYEN PHAN

Previously, at the press conference announcing the Vietnam Pho Festival 2024, Ambassador Vu Ho hoped that in Korea, pho would spread even more and wished that every 3km there would be a Vietnamese pho restaurant, helping to promote pho to Korean life more widely.

The Vietnam Pho Festival 2024 will take place in Seoul, South Korea on October 5 and 6. This is a culinary exchange activity, with pho as the main platform, with at least 40 pho booths from famous brands from Vietnam and Korea. In addition, the festival also has booths introducing Vietnamese cuisine, especially royal cuisine.

Providing more information about the program, journalist Le The Chu, editor-in-chief of Tuoi Tre newspaper, said that this year is the 8th year that Pho Day has been held. In 2023, the organizing committee decided to hold the Vietnam Pho Festival abroad and chose Tokyo (Japan) as the first destination.

Vietnam Pho Festival in Tokyo was a success beyond expectations with over 85,000 visitors in 2 days. Domestic pho brands and the organizing committee did not hesitate to join hands to bring pho abroad to introduce to international friends.

Organizing Committee of Vietnam Pho Festival 2024 in front of the Vietnamese Embassy in Seoul, South Korea - Photo: DUYEN PHAN

Vietnamese Ambassador to Korea Vu Ho and Tuoi Tre newspaper editor-in-chief Le The Chu - Photo: DUYEN PHAN

Koreans enjoy Pho Khoe in Seoul in the chilly autumn weather - Photo: DUYEN PHAN

Vietnam Pho Festival 2024 takes place on October 5 and 6, 2024 at Pie Factory, 441 Gwangnaru-ro, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul (Korea).

The program is co-organized by the Vietnamese Embassy in Korea, Tuoi Tre newspaper, Saigontourist Group, under the direction of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee and the coordination of the Trade Promotion Agency of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Ho Chi Minh City Department of Industry and Trade, General Association of Vietnamese in Korea, Vietnam Business Association in Korea, Korea - Southeast Asia Economic Cooperation Association (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Korea).

Vietnam Pho Festival 2024 has a performance stage, nearly 70 booths, including more than 40 booths selling pho and Vietnamese and Korean delicacies. Besides, there is a space for cultural experiences, exhibitions, and introductions to Vietnamese culinary culture and tourism.

With the slogan "Enjoy Pho, Discover Vietnam", the program organizers hope to use Vietnam Pho Festival to create people-to-people diplomacy activities, promote the friendly relations between the two countries, promote culinary culture, and connect trade based on the economic and tourism potentials of Vietnam and Korea.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/dai-su-viet-nam-tai-han-quoc-nhieu-du-khach-han-me-mon-pho-20241004111403484.htm