Strengthening local cooperation between Vietnam and RoK

Meeting with Kim Hee Soo, Mayor of Jindo island district, Chairman of the Yen Bai Provincial People’s Committee Tran Huy Tuan briefed his hosts on the potential and strengths of Yen Bai as well as the sending of its workers to work abroad including in the RoK.

Kim for his part shared some information about Jindo and discussed cooperation in bringing workers from Yen Bai to work in the district.

Located in the south, with an area of ​​420.32 km², Jindo has strengths in agricultural, forestry and fishery production. Currently, Vietnamese expatriates account for one fourth of the workers in the locality.

Jindo will coordinate with Yen Bai to find human resources to work in the field of agriculture and fishery, Kim assured his guest.

Tuan also travelled to Naju city where he met with Yoon Byung-tae, Mayor of Naju, Lee Juhee, Principal of Dongshin University, Congressman - Council member, and chief representatives of some departments.

Tuan informed his hosts about Yen Bai’s strengths and socio-economic development in 2023 and the first six months of 2024. He also talked about the province’s international cooperation model and its cooperative relationship with Korean partners.

Yoon for his part said Naju is considered a ‘rich land’ with an area of ​​608.4 km2. The city has strengths in high-tech industry, green industry, green energy, electrical industry, electronics and agriculture. Currently there are 16 large industrial corporations operating in the locality.

According to the Mayor, Naju is promoting infrastructure and economic development projects to improve quality of life and attract foreign investment. The city also focuses on environmental protection and sustainable development issues with policies in place to support and encourage the use of green - clean energy and protect the living environment.

The city has Dongshin University, established in 1987, that offers various majors in Science, Technology, Medicine, Economics and Social Development.

At the meeting, both sides signed a document in which they agreed to exchange information and experiences to enhance cooperation in the fields of green energy, high technology, high-quality human resource training, and investment.

Dongsin University and the Vietnam-Korea Businessmen and Investment Association (VKBIA) are assigned to directly support cooperative activities between the two localities.

The Mayor expressed his hope that Naju city would cooperate with Yen Bai province in fields such as green - clean energy, emission reduction, human resource training, tourism and agriculture.

During his stay, Tuan also visited Mokpo city where he met with Kim Won-I, member of the Korean National Assembly, Head of the Mokpo City Delegation, National Assembly MPs, and Mokpo City Council members.

Tuan introduced Yen Bai’s development potential and expressed his hope that Yen Bai and Mokpo would develop cooperative relations in various fields, such as industry, culture, tourism, sustainable development and environmental protection, as well as in receiving and dispatching highly skilled human resources.

Kim welcomed Tuan’s proposals and said both localities could promote cooperation in the fields of investment, trade, tourism, and labour.

The delegation of Yen Bai province also inquired the operational model of Deabul National Industrial Complex in Mokpo city.

Deabul National Industrial Complex currently has over 400 businesses and investors operating in industries such as shipbuilding, automobile manufacturing, machinery, and chemistry. The industrial park employs about 10,000 foreigner workers, with Vietnamese workers making up the most, mainly working in the shipbuilding industry.

General Director Kim Hyo Kyon said that local businesses are in great need of recruiting workers, especially in the field of shipbuilding to meet the development needs of the industrial park in the coming time.

In another development, the Jeollanam-do - Vietnam Cooperation Support Centre was launched at the Innovation and Creativity Convergence Facility of Dongshin University. The centre is to support increased cooperation and exchange between Jeollanam-do and localities of Vietnam in general and Yen Bai in particular.

At the opening ceremony, Tran Hai Linh, Chairman of the VKBIA emphasized that Naju city in particular and localities in Jeollanam-do province in general and Yen Bai province have many things in common and similar characteristics.

It’s therefore necessary to promote local cooperation to contribute to the common development of the Vietnam – RoK relations, said Linh, adding VKBIA and Dongshin University are ready to serve as a bridge for effective cooperation.