 |
| Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh received WTO Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala on May 18, during his working visit to Vietnam. (Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac) |
Many activities and rich content
At the invitation of Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien on behalf of the Government of Vietnam, WTO Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala paid an official visit to Hanoi, Vietnam, from the afternoon of May 17 and left Vietnam early on the morning of May 19 to attend the Group of Seven (G7) Summit in Japan.
During his short visit to Vietnam, General Director Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala had a busy schedule including: meeting with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, working with Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien, Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Le Minh Hoan, Deputy Minister of Finance Vo Thanh Hung, meeting and dialogue with Vietnamese female entrepreneurs in the Pioneering Women Leaders Network (WeLead) and SheTrades Hub, meeting and dialogue with students and lecturers of Hanoi Foreign Trade University, meeting and working with a number of female business leaders of the Vietnam Association of Women Entrepreneurs (VAWE).
 |
| Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien received and worked with the WTO Director General on May 18. (Source: Ministry of Industry and Trade) |
 |
| Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son works with WTO Director General on May 18. (Photo: Tuan Anh) |
Through this visit, through meetings and exchanges with senior leaders of the Government, ministries, sectors, businesses and scholars, the WTO Director-General hopes to promote better understanding and increase support for the WTO, the center of the multilateral trading system.
 |
| Deputy Minister of Finance Vo Thanh Hung (fourth from left) and WTO Director General and Vietnamese delegates after a working meeting at the Ministry of Finance on May 18. (Photo: Tue Anh) |
 |
| WTO Director General meets and dialogues with Vietnamese female entrepreneurs on May 17. (Source: Ministry of Industry and Trade) |
In addition, WTO leaders are interested in learning about the reshaping of global and regional supply chains on the important link of Vietnam; the strategy for sustainable economic and trade development and contribution to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG); especially women's economic empowerment, enhancing the position of women in international trade and how female entrepreneurs and business leaders can respond to current challenges at the national, regional and international levels, including trade logistics and digital transformation.
 |
| The WTO Director-General met with female leaders of the Vietnam Association of Women Entrepreneurs (VAWE) and suggested solutions to global trade challenges facing women-owned businesses in Vietnam on May 18. (Source: VAWE) |
 |
| WTO Director General met with lecturers and students of Foreign Trade University and discussed the topic of “Re-globalization and global supply chains” on May 18. (Photo: TT) |
The visit is also an effort by the Director-General to directly contact WTO member countries, learn about the actual situation at the national and regional levels related to the issues that the WTO is promoting, such as promoting the ratification of the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies reached at the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC12, in Geneva in June 2022), and preparing for the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC13), scheduled to take place in February 2024 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE).
These include issues of high concern to countries such as negotiations on fisheries subsidies, agricultural trade, food security, e-commerce and digital economy, the contribution of trade to sustainable development, practical aspects of the WTO that can be reformed to better meet the needs of developing and least developed members, etc.
Vietnam is a model of successful development.
The visit to Vietnam by Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is the second visit to Vietnam by the Head of the WTO - the global multilateral trade organization, following his predecessor (Mr. Roberto Azevêdo, Brazilian) who visited Vietnam in 2016. The event shows the high interest of the WTO as well as the WTO Director General in the development of Vietnam since joining the WTO in January 2007.
Ms. Okonjo-Iweala once said that Vietnam's continuous growth and development over the past decade and a half since Vietnam became a member of the WTO, especially during a period of many fluctuations in the world, is a miracle, and Vietnam has always been an example for developing countries.
The Director General and many WTO members also shared their appreciation for Vietnam's rapid development achievements, saying that Vietnam's success inspires and provides experience for many countries around the world, especially in the field of foreign economic relations serving national development.
In fact, in the context of the world economy and trade continuing to develop complicatedly, countries are facing many urgent global challenges, the Vietnamese economy still shows dynamism and positive changes, along with the drastic implementation of the national strategy on socio-economic development of the Party and State, Government, enterprises, and social organizations.
The visit of the WTO Director General is also an opportunity for Vietnamese Government leaders, ministries, businesses and scholars to directly hear the opinions of the WTO Director General on the role of the WTO and the work of the WTO in the coming time; at the same time, share with the WTO Head about Vietnam's policy of promoting the multilateral trading system; vision, strategy, specific measures and efforts, as well as proposals to the WTO from Vietnam to promote the multilateral trading system, reform the WTO, promote trade, implement digital transformation, green transformation, adapt to climate change, and sustainable development.
Through international and Vietnamese reality, it can be clearly seen that trade and investment (also known as trade in goods and trade in services) are important tools to help Vietnam effectively implement its socio-economic development strategy, especially as a tool to create breakthroughs in implementing the national strategy for science and technology development, technology transfer, as well as implementing national strategies on digital transformation, green transformation, equitable energy transformation, climate change adaptation, bringing the economy to develop in a sustainable direction, achieving the goals of industrialization, modernization, and improving people's living standards.
Continue to affirm Vietnam's position in the field of international trade
Vietnam always appreciates the role, cooperation and support of the WTO, and respects the principles and regulations of the multilateral trading system, which is the foundation for Vietnam to build, sign and implement bilateral and multilateral trade agreements, including new-generation free trade agreements (FTAs).
 |
| Ambassador Le Thi Tuyet Mai, Head of the Vietnamese Mission to the United Nations, WTO and other international organizations in Geneva and WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala at the WTO headquarters in Geneva. |
Vietnam has become one of the 20 economies with the largest international trade in the world. This is a great achievement of the innovation process over the past 35 years, joining the WTO in early 2007 and implementing commitments in the WTO, while implementing about 100 bilateral and multilateral trade agreements, more than 60 agreements on investment promotion and protection.
As of 2022, Vietnam's export turnover has increased nearly 8 times compared to the time when Vietnam officially joined the WTO in early 2007 (371 billion USD in 2022 compared to 48 billion USD in 2007); realized FDI capital reached about 22.4 billion USD; GDP growth rate remained high in the world, even during the pandemic. Vietnam is the country with the fastest growth rate in brand value in the world in the period 2020-2022, currently reaching 431 billion USD.
Currently, like other countries, Vietnam is facing unprecedented challenges due to the "multi-crisis" situation such as war and hot spots in some countries, the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, food and energy insecurity, economic and financial crisis along with increasing public debt in developing countries, climate change, causing an increasingly large impact on the production, supply and consumption chains, and trade globally.
Some countries with large trade and strong economic potential have been increasing unilateral trade-related measures, negatively affecting many countries. In addition, the trend of regional and bilateral trade agreements continues to increase.
Nevertheless, it is important that WTO Members consistently emphasize the need to maintain a rules-based WTO multilateral trading system that ensures the principles of openness, transparency and fairness, emphasizing the importance of the WTO fully performing its core functions including trade negotiations, implementation and monitoring of multilateral trade agreements, dispute settlement, development assistance and trade capacity building.
To maintain and enhance the role of the WTO to protect the national interests, businesses and people of Vietnam, Vietnam needs to continue to promote its role as a responsible member of the WTO, continue to be proactive and active in the cooperation frameworks of the WTO, strive to fully implement its commitments in the WTO, and at the same time make positive and constructive contributions to issues of common concern at the WTO.
Vietnam's consistent policy is to continue supporting an open, transparent, fair and rules-based multilateral trading system with the WTO playing a central role to promote trade and investment, while contributing to effectively responding to challenges facing countries, such as connecting supply chains, eliminating tariff barriers, fighting trade protectionism; promoting trade exchanges in the context of global trade showing signs of decline. This is an important content in implementing Vietnam's 10-year Socio-Economic Development Strategy 2021-2030.
Vietnam's strategy has set out a policy of continuing innovation, including: Rapid and sustainable development based mainly on science and technology, innovation and digital transformation; Taking reform, improving the quality of a complete, synchronous, modern, integrated socialist-oriented market economic institution and effective and efficient law enforcement as prerequisites to promote national development; Building a self-reliant economy on the basis of mastering technology and proactively and actively integrating and diversifying markets, improving the adaptability of the economy. In particular, applying comprehensive international economic integration as an important driving force to promote economic growth as well as creating a combined strength to enhance Vietnam's competitiveness and position.
The Vietnamese Permanent Mission in Geneva will continue to actively participate in WTO activities and multilateral forums on trade and development in Geneva, along with Vietnamese agencies and organizations fully and synchronously implementing the Strategy both internally and externally, especially with the close coordination and active participation of representatives of ministries, businesses, as well as scholars in building and effectively implementing trade policies, Vietnam's position in the international trade arena will be increasingly enhanced in the coming time.
Source
Comment (0)