Two-way trade turnover between the Republic of Djibouti and Vietnam is expected to reach between 50-100 million USD in the next five years, Rachad Farah, Special Envoy of the President of Djibouti, has said.

The figure reached only 4 million USD in 2012, he told Vietnam News during his four day visit to Vietnam, which ended on July 29.

He said it is time for Djibouti and Vietnam to promote bilateral relations, particularly cooperation in the fields of agriculture, textiles and student exchanges.

A delegation of officials and businesspeople from Djibouti are scheduled to visit Vietnam this November to seek investment and cooperation opportunities with Vietnamese partners.

Djibouti is strong in the services sector, has a good banking system and its excellent ports benefit from the country’s free trade regime, Djibouti could also serve as a transit base for Vietnamese products entering other markets in Africa, and the Middle East, said the diplomat.

A cooperation agreement in education, culture and science and another agreement on economic cooperation are expected to be signed soon by both Governments.

This visit included the first Djibouti Ambassador to Vietnam, who will present his credentials to President Truong Tan Sang by November this year.

“This step is expected to boost bilateral cooperation between the two countries and we also hope that Vietnam will soon send an ambassador to Djibouti,” he said.

The East African country was also keen to learn from Vietnam’s experience in promoting women’s role in various areas, including politics, society and economics, he added.-VNA