At the 39th meeting of the Vietnam-Cuba Inter-Governmental Committee. (Photo: VNA) Minister of Construction Nguyen Thanh Nghi, co-chair of the committee, said cooperation between Vietnam and Cuba has been maintained in 2021 despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
Two-way trade in the January-November period reached 105 million USD, up 2 percent year-on-year, he said, adding that Vietnam has strived to maintain its rice exports to Cuba, helping the Caribbean nation ensure food security and social stability.
Through conferences and workshops, both online and in-person, the two sides have popularised the Vietnam-Cuba trade agreement among their businesses and relevant associations.
Notably, the joint investment working group has introduced Cuba’s new policies, priority areas and projects calling for foreign investments, and proposed solutions to remove difficulties facing Vietnamese investors in Cuba.
The cooperation project on rice production in Cuba for the 2019-2023 period has been carried out as scheduled. Meanwhile, the two sides have coordinated to raise proposals regarding the project helping Cuba with aquatic farming, third phase, and another on corn cultivation in the country.
Remarkable progress has also been made in collaboration in health care and bio-technology. Cuba has provided Vietnam with 5 million doses of Abdala COVID-19 vaccine.
Within the official visit to Cuba by President Nguyen Xuan Phuc last September, ministries, agencies and businesses of the two countries signed many important cooperation agreements. (Photo: VNA) The signing has created a crucial foundation for the two countries to concretise activities and expand cooperation opportunities in the areas in which both are interested in.
Given difficulties and shortcomings to the bilateral cooperation, Vietnam suggested the Cuban government soon take solutions to ensure the effective operation of Vietnamese projects.
The two sides consented to step up collaboration in priority fields as well as the spheres in which both are interested.
They will work to effectively implement reached agreements and create conditions for businesses to utilise tax incentives of the Vietnam-Cuba trade agreement to raise the bilateral trade.
More efforts will be made to roll out the cooperation project on rice production in Cuba, and sketch out the corn and aquaculture projects that are expected to be submitted to competent agencies for approval, heard the meeting.
The two health ministries will enhance cooperation in the supply and transfer of COVID-19 vaccine production technology in Vietnam.
Vietnam and Cuba will also continue with partnerships in other fields like construction, information-communications, finance, customs, banking, education-training, culture-sports-tourism, labour-invalids-social affairs, radio, television, science-technology and justice, among others.
On this occasion, the Vietnamese Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Cuban Ministry of Culture signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation in culture./.
VNA
