The door of cooperation is wide open with Bangladesh

National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue speaks at a meeting with Bangladeshi Parliament Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury. (Photo: VNA)

During the bilateral meetings and official working sessions with the Chairman of our National Assembly , the leaders of the neighboring countries gave a warm, friendly and solemn welcome. Many important activities took place right after the delegation landed at the airport, with the highlight being the talks between the Chairman of the National Assembly Vuong Dinh Hue and the Chairman of the Bangladeshi National Assembly , meeting with the President of Bangladesh, receiving leaders of Bangladeshi political parties, Chambers of Commerce and Industry, and Bangladeshi businesses.

On the first day, a large number of journalists from both countries were present to witness the two National Assembly Chairmen signing a cooperation agreement between the two National Assemblies; the two National Assembly Secretaries General signed a cooperation charter, opening a new page in the relationship between the two National Assemblies, contributing to creating new momentum to promote the relationship between the two countries.

At high-level meetings and receptions with the business community, the National Assembly Chairman repeatedly emphasized the outstanding features of Bangladesh with a population of nearly 170 million people, a very important position in the South Asian region and being Vietnam's second largest trading partner in the South Asian region, saying that this is a market with great potential.

The two sides shared the expectation that after the Vietnam-Bangladesh Economic, Trade and Investment Cooperation Policy and Law Forum held on this occasion, the two sides will create a breakthrough in developing bilateral economic cooperation, which is considered a pillar, and soon achieve the goal of raising the two countries' trade turnover to 2 billion USD.

During the visit, the top leaders of Bangladesh and the business community of the neighboring country expressed their desire to soon have a direct flight between the two countries to realize the opportunities, potentials and strengths of both sides.

Assessing the significance of the visit on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries (1973-2023), President Mohammed Shahabuddin and other leaders emphasized the friendship and valuable support that Vietnam and Bangladesh have given each other during the years when the two peoples fought for independence in the past and in the cause of national construction and development.

At the meeting in a friendly atmosphere, the President of Bangladesh recalled that he and many friends had taken to the streets shouting the slogan “For Vietnam” to support the resistance of the Vietnamese people. The President emphasized that his feelings for Vietnam remain unchanged.

Delighted to welcome National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue, Comrade Rashed Khan Menon, Chairman of the Workers' Party, emphasized that Bangladesh and Vietnam have been close friends for many years, sharing many common values of peace, cooperation and development in the world.

He recalled the years when students and the people of Bangladesh took to the streets to support Vietnam's struggle for national liberation. "With the slogans chanted on the streets "Your name, My name, Our name: Vietnam, Vietnam!", Comrade Rashed Khan Menon still vividly remembers the images of his friends, some of whom sacrificed their lives, always affirming that the struggle of the Vietnamese people was also their own struggle!

The Speaker congratulated Bangladesh on its recent important achievements and expressed his belief that under the leadership of President Mohammed Shahabuddin, the people of Bangladesh will successfully realize the “Vision 2041” of building a modern and knowledgeable Bangladesh by 2041 on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the country's founding.

Speaking to the Speaker of the National Assembly and the business community of the two countries, Ms. Shomi Kaiser, Vice President of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI), said that Bangladesh is striving to realize “Vision 2041” on building a modern and knowledgeable Bangladesh by 2041 on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the country's founding, as well as implementing the United Nations' sustainable development goals. Currently, Bangladesh's GDP has reached 455 billion USD (in 2022), aiming for the target of 1,000 billion USD. Green and clean technology is increasingly used in Bangladesh in a diverse manner.

Through the meetings, the business community of Bangladesh directly proposed and recommended to the Chairman of the National Assembly and leaders of a number of Vietnamese ministries and branches: Currently, the two countries do not have a free trade agreement, but Bangladesh has a large market and always wants to promote investment, business and trade cooperation in the spirit of "win-win". The two countries have similarities in export markets, Vietnam has diverse export products. Bangladesh is making efforts to overcome challenges to get out of the group of low-income countries; the other side expressed its desire to share development experiences and strengthen investment and trade cooperation.

President Mohammed Shahabuddin expressed his admiration for Vietnam’s socio-economic development achievements; affirmed that Bangladesh always considers Vietnam a development model, always values and wishes to further promote the friendship and cooperation between Vietnam and Bangladesh.

That is also the wish and message of the Bangladesh business community to the President of the National Assembly, at the meeting with the leaders of Monem Group, leaders of Doreen Group, Vice President of the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry, President of Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Senior Vice President of Bangladesh-Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry...

The Vietnamese side expressed agreement with the assessment of National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue that, with its favorable geographical location, Bangladesh is considered a gateway for Vietnamese enterprises to penetrate, access and continue to expand to other South Asian and Middle Eastern markets. Bangladeshi enterprises see the importance of Vietnam to expand their penetration into ASEAN markets.

The National Assembly Chairman said that in the current context of the global economy, Vietnam and Bangladesh need to strengthen cooperation, facilitate trade for each other, and strengthen connections between businesses of the two countries to maintain existing supply chains. In addition, the two sides should attract capital and technology to develop new industrial supply chains with high added value, as well as strengthen cooperation in agriculture and fisheries, textiles, construction materials, infrastructure investment, e-commerce and digital economy development, Halal industry development and tourism, etc.

On the routes from the airport to the center where the group stayed, the cyclos and tuk tuks were densely packed on the road, the main means of transportation here. Perhaps that is one of the reasons why this city is also known as the "Cyclo Capital of the World". The impressive image that can be seen everywhere is the diligent drivers transporting passengers back and forth. Your country is developing rapidly, although there are still difficulties of developing countries, traffic jams, noisy, busy lives but full of vitality, novelty, with friendly, gentle, hospitable faces...

In Bangladesh, Muslims make up nearly 90% of the population; English is widely spoken as a second language. According to a report by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), global Muslim spending on Halal food is growing, expected to reach $1.9 trillion by 2024 and $15 trillion by 2050.

This is also one of the issues that received attention during the recent working trips of the National Assembly Chairman to Indonesia, Iran and this time to Bangladesh. Earlier this year, Vietnam had a project on “Strengthening international cooperation to build and develop Vietnam’s Halal industry by 2030”, aiming to capture and open up the potential Halal market. The direction of opening up the potential Halal market with a scale of up to 10,000 billion USD worldwide by 2028 will clearly create a new driving force for sustainable economic development in the context of traditional markets facing many difficulties.

The door to cooperation is wide open, at a new level, with many new opportunities for the business community of our country and Bangladesh, in many fields in the coming time.

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