At the working session (Photo: VNA) Can Tho (VNA) – Vice Chairman of the Can Tho municipal People’s Committee Nguyen Thuc Hien held a working session with Swedish Ambassador toVietnam Ann Måwe in the Mekong Delta city on April 24 to discuss enhancing bilateral cooperation intrade, investment and education-training.
Speaking at theevent, Hien said last year, Can Tho’s exports to Sweden hit 1.43 million USD,mostly rice, aquatic products, apparel, farm produce and processed agriculturalproducts. In the first half of this year, the figure hit 410,000 USD.
Can Tho wishes to tapopportunities from the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) to propel bilateraltrade ties, particularly in fields of strength such as rice, fruits and aquaticproducts, he said.
He expressed his expectation that following the visit, Swedish partners willdevelop cooperation and investment with Can Tho city in fields of shared interest,especially in climate change response and green growth.
As a agriculture-strong area, Can Tho hopes for Sweden’s support in theapplication of digital transformation and advanced technology to achieve efficientagricultural production, popularise the city's potential, advantages, andinvestment attraction policies to the Business Sweden while providing informationon Sweden's strengths, markets, and trade policies for Can Tho.
Hien also proposed Ambassador Måwe helpwith online or direct supply-demand connections between Swedish importers andCan Tho's producers and exporters of rice, seafood, farm produce and processed food.
In education-training, Can Tho hopes thatSweden will increase scholarships for local excellent students in the city,full scholarships for lecturers at universities and colleges to improve theirknowledge and skills in the country.
Måwe, for her part, congratulated Can Tho on ranking 19th in theProvincial Competitiveness Index (PCI). She said Sweden wants to learn about businessenvironment in the Mekong Delta and Can Tho city in particular.
According to her,they are interested in the Mekong Deltaregion and want to learn about projects on collecting wastes and pollutantsthat cause pollution and affect waterway traffic, in order to reduce pollutionand create better waterway transportation conditions for the region.
The Swedish Embassy will continue working with Swedishbusinesses to tackle difficulties when investing in Can Tho, as well as shareinformation to help the Vietnamese firms facilitate exports to Sweden, she said./.
