(MPI) - Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Tran Duy Dong hosted a reception in Hanoi on January 23 for Jochen Flasbarth, State Secretary in the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Deputy Minister of Planning and Investment Tran Duy Dong (right) and State Secretary in the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development Jochen Flasbarth. Photo: MPI

Welcoming State Secretary Flasbarth on his visit to the ministry, Deputy Minister Dong expressed delight over the robust development of Vietnam-Germany relations over the past 50 years.

Germany has always been one of Vietnam’s leading partners in Europe with a total registered investment capital of nearly 2.7 billion USD, ranking 17th out of 144 countries and territories investing in Vietnam. Vietnam is currently one of Germany’s largest trading partners in the Southeast Asia.

Considering that German investment activities in Vietnam are still modest and not commensurate with the potential cooperation of both countries, the deputy minister asked to continue promoting major German enterprises with strengths in technology and finance to invest in key projects, high-tech projects, and in the field of processing and manufacturing in Vietnam.

The deputy minister thanked BMZ for their close coordination with the MPI within the framework of the 2023 Vietnam-Germany Governmental Negotiations on Development Cooperation. The German Government’s commitment to provie 61 million EUR in ODA for Vietnam’s technical assistance projects for the 2023-2024 period reaffirms that Vietnam and Germany are always top priority and important partners for each other.

Vietnam highly values and appreciates the ODA loans and non-refundable ODA from Germany in the three priority ODA cooperation fields of energy, environment, and vocational training. Deputy Minister Dong suggested Germany to consider providing concessional loans for large-scale infrastructure projects, climate change response, digital transformation, and green transformation in Vietnam’s vulnerable regions.

The two sides exchanged views on the implementation of the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP). Accordingly, Vietnam proposed that the International Partner group, including Germany, quickly reach an agreement to convert the committed support amount of 15.5 billion USD for Vietnam into breakthrough projects.

Deputy Minister Dong affirmed that a fair energy transition is crucial for achieving Vietnam's national energy development strategic orientation, with the goal of reaching net-zero emissions by 2050.

Vietnam also proposed Germany ratify the EU-Vietnam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) early to create opportunities to further promote investment between Vietnam and EU countries.

State Secretary Flasbarth stated that Vietnam is a dynamic and potential market in the Southeast Asia, and Germany always attaches importance to comprehensively enhance the strategic partnership with Vietnam. The German Government prioritises cooperation and non-refundable ODA funding to help Vietnam implement its socio-economic development plans.

He also affirmed that Germany is ready to support Vietnam to access technological and financial sources and implement the JETP framework, helping to fulfil Vietnam’s commitment to reduce emissions to “zero” by 2050. Germany also prioritises promoting cooperation in vocational training with localities in Vietnam./.

Bao Linh

Ministry of Planning and Investment