Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong paid a Lunar New Year (Tet) visit to the growing Hoa Lac Hi-tech Park in Hanoi, including participating in a tree planting festival, on February 22.

Hoa Lac, one of three national hi-tech parks, was designed to become a satellite city specialising in scientific activities and attracting foreign investment.

Addressing park staff, the General Secretary hailed development progress in the park, noting that the Party and State considers science-technology development a driving force for socio-economic advancement and national protection.

During the visit, the Party chief took part in a Tet tree planting festival, an annual activity initiated by late President Ho Chi Minh in 1959. He said he hopes the tree planting is held and maintained by the park and its staff, beyond being merely a ceremonial formality.

On the occasion, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong visited the Hoa Lac-based FPT Software Company and the FPT University.

The Hoa Lac Hi-tech Park, approved in 1998, covers nearly 1,590 hectares in Hanoi’s outlying districts of Thach That and Quoc Oai. By mid-August last year, it housed 70 projects with a total investment of more than 56 trillion VND (2.67 billion USD).-VNA