The President of Guinea-Bissau affirmed that Vietnam is a model and an example for Guinea-Bissau to learn from in its past struggle for national liberation and its current fight against poverty.
On the morning of September 7th, at the National Assembly building, National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man met with President Umaro Sissoco Embaló of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, who is on an official visit to Vietnam from September 5-8, 2024.
Warmly welcoming the President and his wife and the high-level delegation from the Republic of Guinea-Bissau on their official visit to Vietnam, National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man stated: This visit is the first exchange of delegations at the Head of State level between the two countries in the 51-year history since the establishment of diplomatic relations (1973-2024); he expressed confidence that the visit will make an important contribution to consolidating and further developing the traditional friendship formed from a history of solidarity and mutual support in the struggle for national independence in the past.
The National Assembly Chairman wished Guinea-Bissau success in organizing the upcoming National Assembly election on November 24, contributing to political stability and creating new driving forces to continue developing the country in the coming time.
President of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau Umaro Sissoco Embaló thanked National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man for the warm welcome extended to the delegation; affirming that Vietnam is a model and example for Guinea-Bissau to learn from in its past struggle for national liberation and its current fight against poverty, thereby enabling it to move steadily forward on the path of development.
President Umaro Sissoco Embaló emphasized that this visit demonstrates the determination to develop and deepen the cooperative relationship between the two countries, elevating it to a new level and strengthening closer and more effective cooperation in the future.
The President of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau stated that he had a very successful meeting with General Secretary and President To Lam, during which both sides informed each other about the situation in their respective countries and signed many important cooperation documents on political-diplomatic matters, agriculture, etc. This demonstrates Guinea-Bissau's readiness to strengthen cooperation with Vietnam.
National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man affirmed that the Vietnamese National Assembly welcomes and supports the signing of numerous cooperation documents between the two countries, creating a favorable legal framework to promote the traditional friendly cooperation between the two countries in the future in a more comprehensive, effective, and substantive manner.
The Speaker of the National Assembly congratulated Guinea-Bissau on its socio-economic development achievements in recent years (economic growth rate of 4.2% in 2022 and 2023, and projected to reach 5% in 2024), contributing to building a peaceful and prosperous country with an increasingly important role and position in West Africa and the continent.
The Party, the National Assembly, and the Government of Vietnam always value and wish to further promote friendly relations and multifaceted cooperation with traditional friendly countries in Africa, including Guinea-Bissau.
To further strengthen cooperative relations between the two countries, the Speaker of the National Assembly requested President Umaro Sissoco Embaló to continue supporting and creating the best conditions for cooperative relations between the two countries.
In terms of political and diplomatic relations, both sides promoted increased exchanges of delegations at all levels, especially high-level delegations, through all channels of the Party, State, and Parliament, and enhanced people-to-people exchanges.
Economically and in other areas, Vietnam is one of Guinea-Bissau's major export markets. However, bilateral trade volume has not yet reached its full potential and met the aspirations of both countries.
The Speaker of the National Assembly proposed that the two sides strengthen economic and trade cooperation by boosting exports and imports of goods in which both countries have strengths and needs, such as rice, cashew nuts, textile raw materials, footwear, agricultural, aquatic, and marine products; and expanding and deepening cooperation in other potential areas such as agriculture, processing of agricultural, aquatic, and marine products, health, education and training, and the marine economy.
Regarding parliamentary cooperation, the Speaker of the National Assembly stated that the parliaments of the two countries need to strengthen cooperation and further promote the role of parliamentary diplomacy in fostering bilateral relations.
Accordingly, the two countries will promote exchanges of high-level delegations and specialized committee-level delegations; and strengthen exchanges and share experiences between members of parliament from both countries in legislative activities, supervision, and decision-making on important national issues.
Both sides will coordinate and strengthen supervision to ensure the effective implementation of cooperation agreements signed by the two countries, and promote the role of the National Assembly in creating a favorable legal framework for the governments, ministries, agencies, organizations, and businesses of both countries to enhance cooperation in all fields.
The parliaments of the two countries have strengthened contact and coordination at international parliamentary forums such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the Francophone Parliamentary Assembly (APF), supporting each other on international and regional issues of common concern; exchanging views on the sidelines of events and sending delegations to participate in multilateral activities hosted by the parliaments of both countries.
At the same time, further strengthen parliamentary cooperation at the regional and international levels. The Vietnamese National Assembly is ready to explore the possibility of building and promoting relations with the Pan-African Parliament and the Parliament of the Economic Community of West African States.
On this occasion, through the President, National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man conveyed his greetings and extended an invitation to the Speaker of the National Assembly of Guinea-Bissau to pay an official visit to Vietnam to discuss bilateral parliamentary cooperation in the future.
The Speaker of the National Assembly expressed confidence that the traditional friendly cooperative relationship between Vietnam and Guinea-Bissau in general, and cooperation between the National Assemblies of the two countries in particular, will continue to be strengthened and developed, for the benefit of the people of both countries, and for peace, stability, and prosperity in each region and the world.
Agreeing with National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man's view that parliamentary diplomacy plays an extremely important role, President Umaro Sissoco Embaló stated that after the parliamentary elections, a Friendship Parliamentary Group between Vietnam and Guinea-Bissau will be established, thereby contributing to promoting cooperative relations between the two countries in the future.
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