Prime Minister: Vietnamese community in South Africa will grow

VTV.vn - Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh hopes that the Vietnamese community in South Africa will continue to grow, stay united, and promote its role as a bridge between Vietnam and South Africa.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his wife Le Thi Bich Tran met with officials, staff of the Embassy and the Vietnamese community in South Africa - Photo: VGP

On the afternoon of November 21 local time (evening of the same day Hanoi time), during the program of attending the G20 Summit and bilateral activities in South Africa, in Pretoria city, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, his wife Le Thi Bich Tran and the high-ranking Vietnamese delegation met with officials, staff of the Embassy and the Vietnamese community in South Africa.

Reporting to the Prime Minister and the delegation, Vietnamese Ambassador to South Africa Hoang Sy Cuong emphasized that this visit of the Prime Minister is a historic milestone in upgrading the framework of relations between the two countries to a Strategic Partnership. The fact that South Africa invited Vietnam to attend the G20 Summit not only shows the importance of relations with Vietnam but also reflects the position and image of our country in the international arena.

The Ambassador said that the Vietnamese community in South Africa currently has more than 200 people. Vietnamese people started living in this land before 1990 (before the establishment of diplomatic relations). People's lives are basically stable, although there are no large enterprises, everyone looks towards their homeland.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh speaks at a meeting with officials, staff of the Embassy and the Vietnamese community in South Africa - Photo: VGP

The Ambassador said that it is necessary to continue to pay more attention to Africa in general and South Africa in particular, especially to exploit new markets; continue to promote cooperation agreements as a foundation (such as the Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of Agriculture of Vietnam and South Africa that was just signed); strengthen business connections...

Mr. Le Hoai Nam, Head of the Vietnamese Community Liaison Committee in South Africa, said that Vietnamese people arrived here more than 30 years ago through many different ways such as working, immigrating with fiancés, studying abroad, emigrating...

Although not large, the Vietnamese community in South Africa is proud and always looks towards their homeland, happy with the strong changes of the country and homeland; actively participates in activities towards the homeland and is proud to contribute to strengthening the friendship between Vietnam and South Africa.

Vietnamese Ambassador to South Africa Hoang Sy Cuong speaks - Photo: VGP

The people's comments expressed their honor and pride in the Prime Minister's visit; joy at the important steps forward in bilateral relations; and emphasized the significance of this working trip, showing that the country's position is increasingly enhanced.

The people raised a number of recommendations and proposals related to ensuring legal status, facilitating visa and labor conditions for Vietnamese people in South Africa; creating conditions for people living far from the homeland to perform online public services; organizing community activities; teaching Vietnamese to children online and in person and learning and preserving national cultural identity; paying attention to community work in remote and difficult areas...

Associate Professor Dr. Duong Anh Tuan, lecturer at the University of Pretoria, expressed his delight at the new policies of the Party and State in the fields of science and technology, innovation, and digital transformation; affirmed that the community of Vietnamese intellectuals and science and technology experts abroad is also an inseparable part of the domestic science and technology sector; and at the same time proposed solutions to promote cooperation in education, training, and science and technology between the two countries.

The Prime Minister informed the people about some major features of the country's situation - Photo: VGP

Bringing Vietnamese experts and workers to work in South Africa

Speaking at the meeting, in a warm atmosphere filled with compatriots' affection, on behalf of the Party and State leaders, General Secretary To Lam and the Prime Minister sent to the community warm greetings, affectionate regards and best wishes from home.

The Prime Minister emphasized that the Vietnam-South Africa relationship is a traditional and long-standing friendship, especially in the struggle for national liberation and unification in Vietnam and the struggle of the South African people against the Apartheid regime and for democratic reform, for the happiness and prosperity of the people. The Communist Party of Vietnam and the African National Congress have had exchanges and contacts since 1955 at the Asian-African Solidarity Conference in Bandung, Indonesia.

Today, the relationship between the two countries is developing strongly. South Africa has become Vietnam's largest trade partner and export market in Africa. However, economic relations are still not commensurate with the potential, needs and desires of the people of the two countries. The space for cooperation between the two countries is still very large, both sides need to bring the bilateral relationship deeper, more substantial, more effective and mutually beneficial.

The Prime Minister believes that if economic cooperation activities are promoted, the Vietnamese community in South Africa will grow stronger - Photo: VGP

Recently, the two sides have continuously exchanged high-level delegations and during this visit, the leaders of the two countries agreed to upgrade bilateral relations to a Strategic Partnership. The two sides agreed to strengthen cooperation and investment in key areas such as agriculture, minerals, clean energy, mining, petrochemical refining, promote bilateral trade, tourism, and people-to-people exchanges.

Analyzing further on cooperation in the agricultural sector, the Prime Minister said that South Africa has large land area and high demand for agricultural products, while Vietnamese people are industrious, hard-working and have a lot of experience and skills in agricultural production; we can send experts and workers to work in South Africa, cultivate, produce, process agricultural products and export on the spot, meeting the domestic needs of South Africa and the very large African market.

The Prime Minister said that if economic cooperation activities are promoted, the Vietnamese community in South Africa will grow.

Delegates attending the meeting - Photo: VGP

Informing the people of some major features of the country's situation, the Prime Minister said that we are preparing to organize the 14th National Party Congress, bringing the country into a new era with a series of historic decisions; promoting the building and improvement of institutions, cutting administrative procedures; attracting and promoting talented people; taking care of human resource development with the spirit that people are the center, the subject, the goal, the driving force, and the resource for development; building a strategic infrastructure system...

At present, we are prioritizing macroeconomic stability, controlling inflation, ensuring major balances of the economy; at the same time promoting growth, striving to achieve a growth rate of 8% in 2025 and double digits in the coming years; transforming the growth model, developing rapidly and sustainably based on science and technology, innovation, and digital transformation.

The Prime Minister hopes that the Vietnamese community in South Africa will continue to grow, stay united, and integrate well into the host society - Photo: VGP

At the same time, the Prime Minister shared information about the situation of natural disasters and severe storms and floods in the country, emphasizing that we always pay attention to taking care of social security with the spirit of "no one is left behind", and at the same time called for the support of compatriots and comrades with the spirit of "whoever has something helps, whoever has a lot helps a lot, whoever has a little helps a little, whoever has merit helps merit, whoever has property helps property, wherever is convenient, help there".

The Prime Minister said that overseas Vietnamese are increasing in number and expanding in geographical area with about 6 million people in more than 130 countries and territories, of which about 4.3 million are permanent residents and 0.6 million are experts and intellectuals.

Recognizing and praising the important contributions of the Vietnamese community across five continents, including the Vietnamese community in South Africa, to the country's overall achievements, the Prime Minister stated that our Party and State always pay attention to our compatriots abroad, identifying the Vietnamese community abroad as an inseparable part of the Vietnamese ethnic community.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, his wife Le Thi Bich Tran, officials and staff of the Embassy and the Vietnamese community in South Africa - Photo: VGP

The Party and State's policies and guidelines have been implemented in detail to care for the Vietnamese community abroad, supporting them to have a solid legal status, stabilize their lives, and integrate into the host society; firmly consolidate the great national unity bloc; encourage and create conditions for them to actively contribute to the cause of building and defending the Fatherland; and actively coordinate to resolve proposals, problems, and difficulties of overseas Vietnamese.

Recently, a number of policies for overseas Vietnamese have been specified in laws such as the Land Law, the Identity Card Law, the Real Estate Business Law, the Law on Amendments and Supplements to a Number of Articles of the Law on Vietnamese Nationality, the Law on Science and Technology, etc. New policies have been issued to create more favorable conditions for people to return to the country to live, work, study, research, etc.; creating conditions for the overseas Vietnamese community to "shine".

The Prime Minister directed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Embassy and representative agencies to continue to do a good job in citizen protection, to be more proactive, more creative and more determined. Officials need to find every way to do it, especially regularly listening to and receiving opinions from people through the most convenient channels and methods, operating 24/7, especially when people encounter difficulties and need support and help... At the same time, actively promote and contribute to implementing agreements of high-ranking leaders into specific projects and programs, bringing about real results.

During the meetings, the Prime Minister will ask the South African side to continue to pay attention and create favorable conditions for the Vietnamese community to live, work stably, and integrate well into South African society, including policies on residence and labor.

The Prime Minister hopes that the Vietnamese community in South Africa will continue to develop, always unite, integrate well into the host society, respect the laws of the host country, preserve the image and reputation of the country, preserve the culture, identity and Vietnamese language, promote the role of a bridge between Vietnam and South Africa; each person can take care of himself or herself and, when possible, contribute to building the country and contributing to the relationship between the two countries.

Source: https://vtv.vn/thu-tuong-cong-dong-nguoi-viet-nam-tai-nam-phi-se-lon-manh-100251122064339728.htm