Promoting investment and tourism in Sydney, connecting to open direct flights from Da Nang to Australia

DNO - Continuing the activities within the framework of the working trip to Australia led by the Permanent Vice Chairman of the People's Council of Da Nang City, Tran Phuoc Son, on the afternoon of September 13, in Sydney, Da Nang City organized the Da Nang Investment and Tourism Promotion Conference.

3 localities have signed a Cooperation Agreement with the Western Sydney Tourism Association.

Attending the workshop were Mr. Nguyen Dang Thang - Consul General of Vietnam in Sydney, Mr. Robert Kok - Deputy Mayor of Sydney City and more than 50 guests representing airlines; investors; Associations, tourism and service businesses and press agencies in Sydney (Australia).

In his opening speech, Permanent Vice Chairman of the City People's Council Tran Phuoc Son introduced the city's investment and business environment and development orientations in the coming time, including the fact that the city has just been approved by the Vietnamese National Assembly for a Resolution on a number of specific mechanisms and policies, which is considered a favorable condition for investors and businesses to come to learn, cooperate and develop together.

To realize the goals of the comprehensive strategic partnership between Vietnam and Australia, Da Nang focuses on attracting foreign direct investment, especially for the Australian market. Therefore, based on the existing good cooperative relationship, Mr. Tran Phuoc Son hopes to invite more Sydney businesses in particular and Australia in general to pay attention to learning about and investing in trade and tourism in Da Nang.

Permanent Vice Chairman of the City People's Council Tran Phuoc Son spoke at the workshop.

Attending and delivering a welcome speech at the Workshop, Mr. Robert Kok, Deputy Mayor of Sydney, said that Sydney is Australia's leading economic center, with developed industrial and service industries and is a gateway to business and tourism activities across Australia.

With a business community of 23,500 enterprises and a city development strategy for the period 2025-2035 with an orientation towards growth based on innovation, the Sydney city government welcomes and welcomes cooperation opportunities with Da Nang businesses to jointly realize the development goals of investment and tourism growth of both sides.

“We would like to introduce to our Australian partners the model of an ecological urban area that harmoniously combines research and development, training and high-tech production with many outstanding incentives in terms of land rent, corporate income tax, and import-export tax. This is one of three national multifunctional high-tech zones in Vietnam,” Mr. Nguyen Cong Tien, Deputy Head of the Management Board of Da Nang High-Tech Park and Industrial Zones, presented at the Workshop.

Ms. Truong Thi Hong Hanh, Director of the Department of Tourism of Da Nang city, introduced the tourism potential of Da Nang city, emphasizing tourism products that are loved by Australian tourists such as beach resort tourism, local cultural experience tourism, golf tourism, festival and event tourism, entertainment, cuisine and the tourism program "Central Heritage Journey" connecting Thua Thien Hue, Da Nang, Quang Nam.

Within the framework of the program, the tourism industry of the three localities signed a Cooperation Agreement with the Western Sydney Tourism Association, focusing on contents such as providing tourism information, coordinating promotion, connecting business cooperation for mutual development between businesses of all parties and promoting the exchange of visitors between Central destinations and Australian cities.

At the workshop, tourism businesses from Da Nang – Quang Nam – Thua Thien Hue had a networking session to exchange and trade with partners in Sydney, Australia. Delegates attending the workshop highly appreciated the information provided by the city, helping Australian delegates and businesses understand more about the potential and investment, business and tourism opportunities of Da Nang.

* Previously, within the framework of the working trip to Australia of the city's leaders led by the Standing Vice Chairman of the City People's Council Tran Phuoc Son, on September 11, the city's working delegation paid a courtesy visit and worked with the Queensland state government and the city of Gold Coast, Australia. It can be said that this is the first visit of the leaders of Da Nang city to Australia after the Covid-19 epidemic was controlled. On this working trip, Da Nang city hopes to re-promote cooperation activities in the fields of tourism, trade, education, investment... with Australian partners in the coming time.

At the working sessions, Permanent Vice Chairman of the City People's Council Tran Phuoc Son thanked the Queensland State Government and the Gold Coast City, Australia, and the Vietnamese Consulate General in Sydney for their thoughtful and respectful reception. At the same time, he informed about the city's socio-economic development situation and development orientation in the coming time; including the recent approval of the Vietnamese National Assembly's resolution on specific mechanisms and policies for Da Nang and allowing Da Nang to be the first locality in Vietnam to pilot the establishment of a Free Trade Zone. Thereby, he proposed a number of contents for Da Nang and the parties to study and promote mutual cooperation in various fields in the coming time.

Specifically, for Queensland state, the Standing Vice Chairman of the City People's Council said that Da Nang welcomes investors from Queensland state to survey and invest in areas where the state has strengths such as high technology, digital transformation, green transformation, tourism management, education in Da Nang as well as requesting the state government to support short-term training for city officials in areas such as public health, local governance, biological conservation, digital economic development, green economy.

In addition, Da Nang wishes to promote two-way tourism between the two sides through promoting direct flights between Da Nang and Queensland; at the same time, organizing trade promotion activities, connecting exchanges in Da Nang, specifically the Taste of Queensland Program to promote products and enhance connections to provide products and goods of both sides through the Queensland Chamber of Commerce and Investment (with an office in Vietnam).

At the meeting with Deputy Mayor Donna Gates and the authorities of Gold Coast City, the Standing Vice Chairman of the City People's Council hoped that the two cities would continue to strongly promote specific cooperation activities in the fields of tourism, education, innovation, film industry, health care and medicine, and in the immediate future, soon promote the Da Nang - Gold Coast international flight route to promote two-way tourism activities between the two sides.

In addition, Da Nang city hopes that the two sides will actively exchange and share knowledge and experience in the fields of coordination, prevention, community consultation and disaster recovery, marine ecological conservation against natural disaster risks; initiatives to build smart traffic systems, environmental protection, waste management, etc.

On this occasion, Permanent Vice Chairman of the City People's Council Tran Phuoc Son invited the Queensland State Government and the Gold Coast City to attend the Forum of Friendly and Cooperative Cities - Da Nang 2025 with the theme "Meeting Da Nang - Convergence and Spread" scheduled to be held in January 2025.

The leaders of Queensland State and Gold Coast City, Australia highly appreciated the visit and work of the Da Nang City delegation and said that they will strengthen cooperation in various fields, in accordance with the potential, strengths and similarities of the two localities. At the same time, the Deputy Mayor assigned the relevant agencies to study and propose cooperation to open a direct flight from Da Nang to Gold Coast in the near future.

*On September 12, the delegation had a working session with Western Sydney International Airport to survey the smart airport model and discuss cooperation opportunities between Western Sydney Airport and Da Nang International Airport in promoting direct flights between New South Wales and Da Nang.

At the meeting, Mr. Ian Bowing, Director of Airline Partnerships at Western Sydney Airport, introduced to the delegation the Western Sydney Airport construction project planned by the Australian Government. Accordingly, this will be Australia's most modern airport connecting Western Australia and New South Wales with advantages over the current airport with a capacity of 10 million passengers/year when put into operation from 2026 and up to 80 million passengers in the period 2030-2050.

The Standing Vice Chairman of the City People's Council highly appreciated this airport project and believed that the airport will play an important role in exploiting the potential of tourism, trade and investment relations between Vietnam and Australia in general and Da Nang and the Western Sydney region, New South Wales in particular. At the same time, the Standing Vice Chairman of the City People's Council requested the Department of Tourism and Da Nang International Airport, AHT Company (the operator of Da Nang International Terminal) to actively work with the Western Sydney International Airport Project Management Board to promote the direct flight route between Da Nang and Western Sydney. The two sides committed to soon promoting the connection so that it can be put into operation when the airport inaugurates phase 1 in 2026, in addition to promoting the two airports to each other and sharing experiences in operating the airport according to the most modern and sustainable standards.

* Also on the evening of September 12, the city delegation visited and worked with the Vietnamese Consul General in Sydney. Consul General Nguyen Dang Thang happily welcomed the Da Nang City leadership delegation, and introduced the activities of the Consulate General in supporting localities, including Da Nang, to connect with the Australian market and informed the delegation about the relationship between Vietnam and Australia in general, as well as Da Nang with Australian localities and businesses in many fields in particular.

The Standing Vice Chairman of the City People's Council thanked Consul General Nguyen Dang Thang for creating favorable conditions and time to welcome the delegation. At the same time, he coordinated with the delegation to organize the working trip to New Zealand and Australia this time. On behalf of the delegation, the Standing Vice Chairman of the City People's Council expressed his wish that the Consul General and the Vietnamese Consulate General in Sydney would continue to support the promotion of the image of Da Nang city to the Australian government and people, contributing to attracting tourists to Da Nang city.