The Ministry of Foreign Affairs organizes 'Meet Africa 2025': Expanding investment opportunities and connecting businesses.

Toàn cảnh buổi làm việc. (Ảnh: Thành Long)

Overview of the working session. (Photo: Thanh Long)

The working session was attended by delegates including Ambassadors and representatives of diplomatic missions of many African countries, both resident and non-resident, in Vietnam, including Algeria, Angola, Egypt, Ethiopia, Chad, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Somalia, Senegal, Nigeria, and the Democratic Republic of Congo; representatives from the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Finance, Industry and Trade, Agriculture and Environment, the Vietnam Confederation of Commerce and Industry; and numerous senior leaders of Vietnamese associations, corporations, and businesses that are investing, cooperating, or interested in expanding economic cooperation with Africa, such as the Vietnam Association of Seafood Processing and Export, Northern Food Corporation, PetroVietNam Group, Viettel, HAPRO, Vingroup, T&T, Xuan Thien, Hoa Binh , MK, AquaOne, and many other businesses.

Thứ trưởng Ngoại giao Nguyễn Minh Hằng phát biểu khai mạc. (Ảnh: Thành Long)

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Hang delivered the opening remarks. (Photo: Thanh Long)

In her opening remarks, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Hang reiterated the natural and close bond between the people of Vietnam and the people of African countries, sharing a common aspiration for independence, inspiring and supporting each other in past national liberation struggles and in nation-building today.

Against the backdrop of profound global changes, with Vietnam entering a new phase of development aiming to become a developed, high-income country by 2045, and African countries rising to become new drivers of global growth in the future, the Deputy Minister expressed his hope that Vietnam and African countries would actively leverage their existing good relations to exploit potential and promote concrete, substantive cooperation results in many fields, bringing practical benefits to the people and businesses of both sides.

Emphasizing that further deepening the traditional friendly cooperative relationship with friendly African countries has always been a priority in Vietnam's foreign policy, the Deputy Minister stated that both sides have great potential for cooperation, meeting the needs and capabilities of each side in areas such as infrastructure development, energy, green transformation, digital transformation, and tourism, in addition to the traditional field of agricultural cooperation and food security. Furthermore, Deputy Minister Nguyen Minh Hang affirmed that Vietnam is always ready to share its experience in innovation, economic development, and international integration with its African friends.

Recalling Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's guiding principle of "What is said must be done, what is committed must be fulfilled," the Deputy Minister stated that to further strengthen and deepen Vietnam-Africa relations, it is necessary to closely link the participation of businesses, with the Government playing a facilitating role in enhancing effective cooperation among enterprises.

Highlighting Africa's immense potential with over 50 countries and a population of over 1.4 billion people, a GDP exceeding US$3 trillion, abundant natural resources, a young workforce, many dynamic developing economies, vast opportunities, a solid foundation of good political relations, and the strong determination of leaders from both sides, the Deputy Minister expressed his hope that ministries, sectors, localities, and businesses would continue to pay more attention and be more proactive in cooperating with the region. The Deputy Minister affirmed that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will always stand alongside the representative offices of African countries and Vietnamese businesses, making Vietnam-Africa relations a model for South-South cooperation in the new era.

Đại sứ, đại diện các cơ quan đại diện ngoại giao của nhiều nước châu Phi thường trú và không thường trú tại Việt Nam. (Ảnh: Thành Long)

The meeting was attended by Ambassadors and representatives of diplomatic missions from many African countries residing in Vietnam. (Photo: Thanh Long)

Speaking at the event, the African Ambassadors expressed their admiration for Vietnam's socio-economic development achievements after 40 years of reform; they wished to learn from Vietnam's development and integration experience, improve management capacity, and train human resources. Highly appreciating the practical significance of the event organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ambassadors hoped that the event would provide an opportunity to meet, interact directly with, and connect with major Vietnamese businesses interested in cooperating with Africa; they called on reputable and financially strong businesses to explore investment opportunities in Africa, especially in key infrastructure projects and connecting economic corridors to promote regional integration and linkages in Africa, in the context of the continent's accelerated implementation of the All-African Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).

Algerian Ambassador Azeddine Bechka stated that Algeria is actively promoting economic diversification, strengthening logistics infrastructure connectivity in the North African and Sahel regions, supporting young startup businesses, and is ready for unlimited cooperation with Vietnam, as committed by the Algerian Prime Minister during the official visit of Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh last November.

Angolan Ambassador Fernando Miguel introduced that Angola is focusing on developing infrastructure projects connecting Angola with the region to support the acceleration of African integration; considering Vietnam an important partner in Asia and acknowledging Vietnam's commitments in cooperation with Africa; and calling on Vietnamese businesses with capabilities in the fields of transport, infrastructure, and energy to participate in projects in Angola.

Ethiopian Ambassador Dessie Dalkie Dukamo recalled the official visit of the Ethiopian Prime Minister to Vietnam in April 2025, highlighting the positive results, most notably the official launch of a direct flight connecting Hanoi and Addis Ababa in July 2025; he expressed hope that this would further promote economic cooperation and people-to-people exchanges in the future.

The Ethiopian ambassador stated that Africa in general, and Ethiopia in particular, has great needs and potential for cooperation in the fields of energy, infrastructure development, digital transformation, and more.

Ambassador Abakar Saleh Chahaimi of Chad introduced the potential and strengths of the country, especially its untapped gold and oil resources; large areas of agricultural land suitable for cultivation; and its interest in energy transition, infrastructure development, and tourism…

Also at the event, senior leaders of major Vietnamese businesses and corporations spoke, sharing information about the need for cooperation in areas of strength with African countries and connecting with African ambassadors.

Bà Nguyễn Phương Trà, Vụ trưởng Vụ Trung Đông - Châu Phi phát biểu tại buổi làm việc. (Ảnh: Thành Long)

Ms. Nguyen Phuong Tra, Director of the Middle East - Africa Department, speaks at the working session. (Photo: Thanh Long)

Speaking at the meeting, Ms. Nguyen Phuong Tra, Director of the Middle East - Africa Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, suggested that African ambassadors cooperate to propose and implement activities to promote political trust and closer ties between Vietnam and Africa, especially through high-level delegation exchanges; review the implementation of commitments and agreements already reached and improve the legal framework, including promoting the signing of fundamental and important agreements such as the Agreement on visa exemption for holders of diplomatic and official passports; the Agreement on encouragement and protection of investment, the Agreement on avoidance of double taxation; and propose that the governments of both sides take measures and preferential policies to attract investment for Vietnamese businesses in Africa.

Regarding immediate measures, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs proposed strengthening access to information and connecting businesses; organizing surveys and field trips, whereby African ambassadors actively organize business delegations to explore and exchange cooperation opportunities with Vietnamese businesses, promoting people-to-people exchanges, cultural exchanges, and tourism between the two sides.

As part of the "Meeting Africa" program, on the afternoon of December 11th, African ambassadors visited Vinfast's manufacturing complex in Hai Phong to explore possibilities for future cooperation with Vietnam in the field of green transportation.