9:56:56 AM | 8/24/2015
In 2015, Vietnam and Germany are celebrating the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations. In the last 40 years, Vietnam and Germany have been enjoying consistent growth in diplomatic relations, especially since both countries agreed to be strategic partners in 2011. Vietnam and Germany relationship has a high potential and is developing in a positive direction.
The already good relations between Germany and Vietnam were given fresh momentum by the visits to Vietnam by Federal Chancellor Merkel (2011), Federal Finance Minister Schäuble and Federal Economic Affairs Minister Gabriel (2014) and, most recently, the visit to Germany by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung in 2014. In October 2011, Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel and Prime Minister Dung signed the so-called Hanoi Declaration. This established a Strategic Partnership between Germany and Vietnam that is designed to strengthen political, economic and cultural relations, and development cooperation.
German stampVietnam has seen increasing influence from Germany. In particular, the new building of the National Assembly of Vietnam was designed by a German architecture company. A lot of technology in this building such as the sound system of the big plenary room, ceilings and many others come from Germany.
Another major project is the building of a German House in Ho Chi Minh City. The idea is to provide a joint domicile for all the German institutions operating there as well as for interested German entrepreneurs. Construction is scheduled to begin in early 2015.
There are some 125,000 Vietnamese or Germans of Vietnamese descent living in Germany. Approximately 100,000 people in Vietnam speak German.
In addition, German – owned development bank, KfW Group are supporting Vietnam to construct the Metro Line 2 in Ho Chi Minh City through a loan agreement of US$ 38.7 million. This is the first tranche of a total commitment of US$333 million, which the Federal Republic of Germany provides to the Government of Vietnam for the construction of the line 2. Under the framework of bilateral economic co-operation, Germany is making a substantial contribution to improving the traffic situation in HCM City by providing an environmental friendly mode of urban public transport.
Three top priorities for co-operation
At the government negotiations in July 2013, Germany and Vietnam decided to give their development cooperation a new direction. It was agreed that, in future, the focus of their collaborative activities should be on vocational education and training, energy and the environment.
Vocational training
In Vietnam today, only about 15 percent of the working population has formal qualifications and around 1.5 million young people pour onto the job market every year. Through a technical cooperation measure, Germany is now advising Vietnam on how to develop a national vocational education and training strategy and establish a decentralized network of vocational training schools. As part of this measure, particular attention is being paid to providing the training people need to work in sectors with especially high growth potential, such as industrial mechanics, metalworking and electronics. The Vietnamese government also wants to promote jobs in environment-related fields.
An important aspect of these activities is collaboration with the private sector. In particular, the involvement of German companies could make it easier for Vietnam to establish a dual system of vocational education and training modelled on the German one.
Environmental protection
Vietnam is considered one of the countries most affected by climate change, its Mekong Delta is one of the world's three most vulnerable deltas. In the future, Vietnam will have to contend with the effects of climate change, in particular in its coastal regions. Coastal protection and the conservation and rehabilitation of the mangrove forests in the Mekong Delta are therefore a priority area of German-Vietnamese cooperation. At the same time, efforts are underway to develop strategies with the people living there to help them make use of the local eco-systems in a sustainable manner.
Other areas in which considerable action is needed in Vietnam are natural forest management, reforestation and the protection of biological diversity. Germany is supporting efforts aimed at allocating forest land to the local population; establishing commercial, sustainably managed forest enterprises; and protecting and managing national parks.
Energy
Vietnam's growing economy means that the demand for electricity is also growing at an enormous rate. Germany is supporting Vietnam in its efforts to boost power generation from renewable energy sources, such as wind power. Furthermore, Germany is also helping Vietnam to modernize and expand its transmission line and grid system. At the government negotiations in 2013, the two countries agreed a new project that is to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMUs) in their efforts to increase their use of renewable energies and their energy efficiency.
Germany is also advising the Vietnamese government, the biggest electricity supplier Vietnam Electricity, and the country's energy regulator, on how to develop a cost-covering system of tariffs.
Le Phuong
Vietnamese
