Helsinki (VNA) - Chairman of the National Assembly (NA) Vuong Dinh Hue met with Anna-Kaisa Ikonen, Mayor of Tampere city, the second largest urban area in Finland, on September 11.

The Finnish city is an industrial hub of various businesses and projects in high technology across the fields of health care,  fundamental science, tertiary education and nanotechnology.

Ikonen introduced major firms which are keen on carrying out projects and bolstering cooperation with Vietnam in the coming time in digitalisation, information technology, smart cities model, renewable energy, healthcare and scientific research, cybersecurity solutions for Government leaders, businesses and organisations. 

In reply, NA Chairman Hue asked the Mayor of Tampere to call on leading firms of the city to further invest in Vietnam, especially in spheres that the city holds strengths, capitalising on benefits brought by the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement, in a bid to facilitate bilateral trade-investment. 

Vietnam is working to attract more foreign investment to adapt to the supply chain transition, and seize opportunities in economic recovery in the post-pandemic time, he said, adding that the country hopes to step up cooperation with Finland in potential fields such as high technology, telecommunication, renewable energy, environment, water treatment and IT. 

Vietnam has over the years paid heed to startup ecosystem development and innovation, cooperation between universities and research institutes. Mechanisms and incentives have been rolled out to attract resources from the local businesses as well as their foreign counterparts, Hue stated.

The Vietnamese top legislator affirmed that the Southeast Asian country is to perfect a legal corridor for a favourable, stable and safe business climate for foreign investors, including those from Finland.

He took the occasion to invite Ikonen and businesses of Tampere to visit Vietnam in the near future.

While in Finland, a high-ranking delegation of the NA led by Chairman Hue paid a visit to the Embassy of Vietnam and met representives of the Vietnamese community in the country.

Ambassador Dang Thi Hai Tam said the embassy has exerted efforts in stepping up citizen protection measures since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as helping Vietnamese students, arranging repatriation flights, and carrying out diplomatic tasks, among others. 

The NA Chairman briefed the participants on the outcomes of his visit to Finland, and appreciated their sentiments and charitable activities for their homeland in the times of hardship.

He affirmed that the Vietnamese community abroad is an inseparable part of the nation and citizen protection work will be bolstered in the time to come.

More than 10,000 Vietnamese are staying in Finland, including nearly 2,500 students./.