Vietnam to increase multi-faceted cooperation with Finland

He welcomed Satonen’s working visit which he believed would further contribute to strengthening the traditional friendship and multi-faceted cooperation between the two countries in general, and in the field of labour and employment in particular.

He also spoke highly of the signing of a memorandum of understanding on labour cooperation between the two countries and the organization of the Vietnam-Finland labour cooperation forum on this occasion.

Chinh held that economic, trade, and investment cooperation between the two countries has shown positive growth in recent times, but it has yet to match their potential. Labour cooperation is one of the areas where both sides have significant room for improvement and can complement each other.

To further strengthen bilateral relations, the Prime Minister proposed that both sides continue to maintain and research the establishment of new mechanisms for cooperation in fields such as science and technology, innovation, vocational education, and expand cooperation into new and potential fields like green transition, digital transformation, renewable energy, green economy, and circular economy, as well as technology transfer, technology infrastructure development, and digital infrastructure.

According to the PM, Vietnam has a young population, a relatively large labour market with more than 52 million workers, and increasingly higher labour quality. He urged the two labour ministries to soon exchange and reach agreements on effective implementation of the recently signed labour cooperation MoU, connect businesses from both countries, and facilitate the process of bringing Vietnamese workers to Finland to work and gain experience.

Finland could provide information on the rights and obligations of workers, while Vietnam is prepared to ensure workers' readiness in terms of skills, legal knowledge, and cultural understanding, he told his guest.

The PM also suggested that both sides actively exchange delegations at all levels to enhance political trust and create momentum for bilateral cooperation. He emphasized the importance of increasing trade and investment promotion activities, making full use of the EU-Vietnam free trade agreement (EVFTA) and the pending EU-Vietnam investment protection agreement (EVIPA), and raising bilateral trade turnover to match the potential of both countries.

In addition, he encouraged both sides to further strengthen cultural and tourism cooperation, and people-to-people exchanges.

Satonen for his part affirmed that Vietnam is an important partner in the region for Finland, and the relationship between the two countries is developing positively, particularly in the field of education. Currently, there are 50,000 Vietnamese living, studying, and working in Finland, actively integrating into and contributing to the local society.

Agreeing with the PM’s suggestions, the Minister expressed Finland’s desire to further increase cooperation with Vietnam, especially in the areas of education, labour, and cultural exchange.