(Speech by comrade Nguyen Anh Tuan, City Party Committee member, Director of the Department of Foreign Affairs at the 16th City Party Congress, October 15, 2020) Dear Delegation [...]
(Speech by comrade Nguyen Anh Tuan, Member of the City Party Committee, Director of the Department of Foreign Affairs at the 16th Congress of the City Party Committee, October 15, 2020)
Dear Presidium!
Dear Congress!
First of all, I would like to wish the leaders and delegates good health and happiness. Wishing the Congress great success! I also expressed my high agreement with the Draft documents submitted to the 13th Party Congress, the Draft documents submitted to the 16th Congress of the City Party Committee and related presentations. As assigned by the Congress Presidium, I would like to present a speech with the content:"Continue to be proactive and promote foreign affairs; constantly improve integration capacity to take full advantage of the opportunities brought by the international integration process, especially the signed free trade agreements, contributing to the successful implementation of the Resolution of the 13th Party Congress and the 16th Party Congress of the city for the 2020-2025 term."
Dear Congress!
The 12th Congress of the Party has set out the requirement to continue to be proactive and promote foreign affairs; Continuously improve integration capacity to make the most of opportunities brought about by the international integration process, especially signed free trade agreements. This is truly a policy that has been refined, inherited, and developed over many terms of our Party. This policy has been drastically directed by the City Party Committee and Standing Committee at all levels and party organizations to implement, mobilizing the combined strength of Party diplomacy, state diplomacy and people's diplomacy, contributing to the successful implementation of the Resolution of the 12th Party Congress and the 15th City Party Congress for the 2015-2020 term. Specifically on the following main areas:
First of all, the total capital of the city's foreign direct investment (FDI) sector has increased sharply in the past 5 years, reaching 9.41 billion USD, bringing this total capital to nearly 18.2 billion USD with the presence of multinational and transnational corporations such as LG, Bridgestone,... This is an important additional capital source for development investment, contributing to GDP growth and state budget revenue, promoting Technology transfer and advanced management skills to city residents. This capital also directly increases the city's export turnover. During the 5-year period 2015-2020, the city maintained an average growth rate of import-export turnover of 34.42%/year, estimated at 18.94 billion USD in 2020 alone, 4.5 times higher than in 2015.
Another source of external force, ODA, has also shown very practical effectiveness. This capital source has contributed to strongly transforming the technical infrastructure, renewing the traffic and urban appearance of the city with many key projects such as: Tan Vu - Lach Huyen bridge and road, Hai Phong international gateway port infrastructure, East - West traffic link axis,... From there, it has contributed to helping the city form an outstanding infrastructure system, especially creating a land fund with the same position and strength to increase the attraction of domestic investors with the presence of a series of Leading investors such as Vingroup, Sungroup, FLC... bring "new vitality", demonstrating the effective combination of "internal forces" and "external forces" in all 3 areasThe main economic pillars are the port-logistics economy, high-tech industry and tourism. This factor, along with FDI, has had a direct impact on increasing the output of imported and exported goods through the port. By 2020, the output of goods through the port is estimated to reach 153.3 million tons, 2.24 times more than 2015.
The city's economic space continues to expand. To date, the city has built and established trade connections with 126 countries and territories around the world. The event of Lach Huyen Port successfully welcoming the super-large ships Northern Jaguar 8,814 TEU and Wan Hai 805 with a tonnage of 132,000 tons of cargo are milestones for connecting trans-oceanic container shipping directly from Hai Phong, affirming that the city's seaport and logistics economic sectors have initially surpassed the regional level and reached out globally. Cat Bi International Airport has successfully connected a number of international routes, and along with the seaport, has become an important driving force to continuously elevate the city's position. Other linkage and cooperation activities are also promoted and have many cyclesPositive developments such as: Economic Corridor of 5 provinces of Vietnam - China; local level cooperation with Japan, Korea, EU, United States,...; multilateral links with organizations CityNet, WCCD, TPO, WeGO, Mayors for Peace,...
Cultural diplomacy activities and foreign information work have innovation and creativity associated with promoting the land and people of Hai Phong, with investment and tourism promotion, and opening international flights. The Red Poinciana Festival has always created a good impression in the hearts of friends and tourists from all over the world. And most recently, Lan Ha Bay has officially become one of the 46 most beautiful bays in the world. The city is also actively completing a dossier to submit to UNESCO to recognize Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba Archipelago as a new world natural heritage in 2023 with 4 criteria of aesthetics, geology and geomorphology, ecosystem diversity and species diversity.
The work on Vietnamese people abroad has been implemented effectively, encouraging and motivating overseas Vietnamese to return to their homeland. In particular, the value of remittances in the period 2016-2020 reached about 1.61 billion USD, an increase of 69.12% compared to the period 2011-2015. In 2019 alone, the amount of remittances sent reached 409 million USD (about 9,000 billion), equivalent to 1/3 of the city's total domestic revenue budget in the same year. This foreign currency flow has made an important contribution to household economic development, investment, and capital contribution to production and business.
Dear Congress!
The city's foreign affairs achievements over the past 5 years have affirmed the correctness, science, and integrity of its policy of continuing to be proactive and promote foreign affairs; Continuously improve integration capacity to make the most of the opportunities brought by the international integration process, especially the signed free trade agreements proposed by the 12th Party Congress. Besides, it also shows the lively "organic" relationship between the Party's policies and the implementation of political tasks at the local level like our city. Those foreign policy achievements are the result of outstanding efforts of the entire political system, with the active and proactive participation and coordination of departments, branches, localities, businesses and the People.City, under the centralized, direct and drastic direction of the City Party Committee and the City Party Committee Standing Committee.
From the above success, some lessons to be learned are: 1) The world's reality is always moving and changing, so cognitive thinking must change flexibly, integrating both in the direction of multilateralization and diversification, but must be highly selective in the direction that any field that is beneficial to the country, the city, and the people needs to be fully exploited (2) always combine self-strength and internal strength with consensus. The love and support of friends and international partners with the power of the times to aim for substantive and effective foreign affairs results (3) the correct and drastic leadership and direction of the City Party Committee and the City Party Committee's Standing Committee in foreign affairs and integration work along with the consensus of the entire political system play a decisive role in the quality and effectiveness of this work.
Dear Congress,
Draft Documents submitted to the 13th Party Congress predict that in the coming years, the world and regional situation will continue to change rapidly, complexly, and difficult to shape, with many multi-dimensional and intertwined impacts. Climate change, natural disasters and especially the severe impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic; The situation in the East Sea is becoming complicated. The Fourth Industrial Revolution is bringing both opportunities and challenges to countries and cities. Our country has 13 free trade agreements (FTAs) in effect and are promoting their effectiveness such as: CPTPP, EVFTA,... and are preparing to complete RCEP negotiations.
In that context, foreign affairs, whose core is the task of comprehensive economic integration, is still identified as the central focus by our Party. To continue to perform the above tasks well, contributing to the successful implementation of the Resolution of the 13th Party Congress and the Resolution of the 16th Congress of the City Party Committee, I would like to propose the following solutions:
First, thoroughly implement the motto of comprehensive, drastic and effective implementation of foreign policy orientations that will be approved by the 16th Congress of the City Party Committee; Continuously improve the effectiveness of coordination between Party diplomacy, State diplomacy, people-to-people diplomacy, between sectors, levels, localities and businesses to promote total international cooperation in the city's strong and key areas.
Second, continue to reinforce strategic and core trust with international friends and partners, focusing on partners from countries, regions, and communities such as Japan, Korea, the United States, EU, China, and ASEAN. Actively participate in the activities of multilateral organizations, mobilize international organizations to increase operations, set up branches and headquarters in the city, research and establish the city's contact points in a number of key international markets on the basis of public-private partnerships. The study proposes to the Central Government to have specific policies for the city's foreign affairs, especially regarding decision-making authority.
Third, continue to promote administrative reform, comprehensively apply information technology in administrative management, in providing public services to enhance openness, transparency, and save time and effort of people and businesses. Actively improve the investment and business environment in accordance with commitments and integration principles; Strengthen cooperation and coordination with central agencies, localities, domestic and foreign partners through diplomatic channels in implementing foreign affairs and integration tasks.
Fourth, improve the city's capacity to prevent, resolve, and handle disputes, complaints, and complaints regarding international trade and investment. It focuses on training and coaching businesses on seizing opportunities and clearly identifying challenges of FTAs, international regulations, standards and multilateral institutions; foster and develop a team of legal officers and lawyers to protect the legal and legitimate rights and interests of the city's people and businesses in resolving legal disputes.
Year is, building the city's foreign cultural identity. Harmonious coordination between cultural diplomacy and economic diplomacy. Accordingly, it is necessary to focus on completing the submission to UNESCO to recognize Ha Long Bay - Cat Ba Archipelago as a new world natural heritage and focus on researching the outstanding global value of military art of the Bach Dang pile site relic; improve the quality of human resources, build the image of "integrated and developed city citizens"; promote the learning and practice of foreign languages among all classes of people. Research and test the model "Cities using English as a second language". Pay attention to innovating and improving the effectiveness of Hai Phong people working abroad.
Dear Congress!
With the achievements, we fully believe that the Party Committee, government, army and people of the city will always highly promote the tradition of "loyalty and determination to win", overcome all difficulties and challenges in foreign affairs, make the spirit and determination of international integration penetrate deeper into the political system and social life, contributing to successfully implementing the tasks set by the 13th Party Congress and the 16th City Party Congress, making the country "on par with the powers of the five continents", as well as completing the goal of building our city into a city worthy of Southeast Asia in this decade.
Finally, once again we would like to wish the leaders, delegates and the entire Congress good health and happiness.
Wish the Congress a great success!
Thank you very much.
Procedures
