Urban development forum shapes future of Da Nang, Yokohama

Da Nang (VNA) – In a joint effort to address urban development challenges, authorities of Da Nang City and leaders of Japan’s Yokohama city convened the 12th urban development forum in the Vietnamese central city on January 16.

Their discussions covered a range of topics, including the establishment of eco-industrial zones, solid waste management, smart urban development, sustainable growth and voluntary local assessments.

Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Le Quang Nam described these discussions as a groundwork to study and propose solutions to fostering smart urban development in Da Nang, helping address local pressing issues such as traffic management, urban development, public order and security, environment, education, healthcare, and economic development. The ultimate goal is to improve the quality of local lives while ensuring better social welfare.

As part of the event, the municipal authorities arranged a field trip for the Japanese delegation to explore key projects, including the Lien Chieu Port, a railway station relocation project, and a waste treatment plant.

The forum also served as a platform to facilitate business connections, fostering ties between the Da Nang Young Entrepreneurs’ Association and businesses from Yokohama city.

Highlighting the collaborative achievements over the past years, Director General on Development Cooperation of Yokohama city Hashimoto Toru said both Da Nang and Yokohama have declared their commitment to carbon neutrality by 2050. Da Nang's focus on green, sustainable development and carbon neutrality with help popularise its image and attract more capital in the future.

Yakabe Yoshinori, Consul General of Japan in Da Nang, noted that Da Nang has set long-term economic development goals with the aim of becoming a regional hub for commerce, logistics, finance, tourism, hi-tech and information technology (IT) in the entire Southeast Asia.

As a port and well-known tourist destination, Yokohama is also a key component of Japan's largest industrial region, the Keihin industrial zone so that it is home to numerous high-tech and IT enterprises, he said, adding that the Consulate General wishes to see further development in the ties between the two cities and offer support to the best of its ability.

Operating under the Memorandum of Understanding on technical cooperation for sustainable development signed by the two cities, this forum has been a recurring event since 2013. To date, 11 editions have been successfully held in the two cities./.