In his speech, Chairman of the Hanoi Municipal People’s Committee Nguyen The Thao reviewed the pages of the nation’s glorious history during the resistance war against US imperialists for national salvation and praised the significant contributions by the working class to the revolutionary cause and the current process of national construction and defense.

In the first quarter of this year, Hanoi’s economic growth rate saw a sharp fall due to the global economic meltdown. As a result, many businesses have faced difficulties in production or providing salaries for workers. In the face of this situation, Hanoi has mobilised all its resources to curb the economic downturn and ensure social welfare by promoting trade and business activities, stimulating consumption, building houses for low-income earners and restructuring agriculture and rural development, said Mr Thao.