Future areas of cooperation between Haiti and Vietnam will be investment, agriculture and culture, visiting Haiti Prime Minister Laurent Salvador Lamothe said in an interview with the Vietnam News Agency on December 17.

He stated that the cooperation will be based on mutual respect, solidarity, humanity and respect for each other’s sovereignty.

Apart from a desire to step up cooperation with Vietnam in the telecoms sector, Haiti wishes to welcome other Vietnamese investors in other fields, including infrastructure and power energy.

The Haiti PM said he has discussed with the Vietnamese Government on the possible establishment of a linkage in the power sector to help all Haitian people have access to electricity.

The future cooperation in infrastructure and energy is likely to drive the two countries’ two way trade up to 400 million USD, the PM added.

As the two countries decided to foster closer cooperation, two Vietnamese ministers came to Haiti to seek investments in the newly-established industrial zone in the northeastern province of Caracol .

He said Vietnamese businesses can enjoy other investment opportunities in Haiti as it has recently signed a preferential agreement on garment and assembling with the US .
Lamothe also mentioned Vietnamese agricultural experts’ visits to Haiti to study rice export possibilities and help the country mechanise rice farming.

He noted that formerly a rice growing country, Haiti is now capable of turning out only 100,000 tonnes of rice and has to import up to 300,000 tonnes of rice to meet its consumption demand of 400,000 tonnes. He referred to possibilities to buy Vietnam ’s rice.

The PM spoke of Haiti and Vietnam previously signing a joint statement detailing their specific areas of cooperation, especially rice farming and aqualculture.

Lamothe talked about the signing of a strategic agreement with Vietnam ’s Military Telecom Group (Viettel) in which the group will provide rice for Haitian people and assist Haiti in distance education and other fields with added values.

In the cultural field, he spoke about a plan to organise a Vietnam Cultural Week in Haiti in March 2013 to introduce the Southeast Asian country’s cultural identities to Haitian people.

Lamothe affirmed that the aim of his four-day historical visit from December 16, the first to Vietnam by a high-ranking Haitian leader since the two countries set up their diplomatic ties, is to further consolidate and strengthen the ties with Vietnam.-VNA