Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has called on the Overseas Vietnamese Liaison Association to play a greater role as an important bridge connecting the overseas Vietnamese community with nearly 90 million people at home.

Phuc made the call at the 3 rd Congress of the Overseas Vietnamese Liaison Association held on March 17 in Hanoi with the participation of over 200 delegates and prominent guests including Vice President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Nguyen Lam and Vice Director of the Foreign Ministry’s Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs Dang The Hung.

He affirmed that the overseas Vietnamese community, which numbers about 5 million, is an integral part of the Vietnamese nation.

The Deputy PM spoke highly of the achievements the association has reapped in its previous term, saying that this will serve as a solid foundation for the association to move forwards further development in the new period.

At the event, the association’s Secretary General Nguyen Lan Trung highlighted the association’s effective implementation of its main political task of popularising the government’s policies among the overseas Vietnamese community over the past five years.

The association, which now comprises of more than 300 members, has set up contacts with hundreds of overseas Vietnamese visiting the home country to receive their opinions and discuss how they can contribute to the development of the fatherland.

On this occasion, several individuals and groups were honoured with the President’s Order on National Unity and certificates of merits of the Vietnam Fatherland Front and the Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs for their outstanding contributions to the cause.

The delegates elected former Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Phu Binh as the president of the association for the 2012-2017 term.-VNA