Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh and United Arab Emirates (UAE) Minister of Economy Sultan Bin Saeed Al Mansoori will co-chair the upcomingfourth meeting of the Vietnam-UAE Intergovernmental Committee in Abu Dhabi on April 18.

The two ministers planned to review the implementation of content agreed in thethird meeting’s minutes in Hanoi in 2016, such as solving difficulties relatedto joint ventures and the investment cooperation of enterprises operating inthe fields of oil and gas, renewable energy, metallurgy, and ship repair.

They will re-examine the negotiation and signing of cooperation agreements oncustoms, banking, agriculture, extradition and transfer ofsentenced persons; as well as the operation of the directflight between the two countries.

Regardingspecific cooperation measures for the time ahead, the two ministers will discussthe opening of the UAE Consulate General and UAE local representative officesin Ho Chi Minh City and other major cities.

They also discuss the further facilitation of Halal certification for Vietnameseseafood products for export to the UAE, and how to encourage the two countries’enterprises to participate in each other’s exhibitions and fairs.

The meeting will focus on promoting the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development torespond to the proposal to finance a transport infrastructure project in thenorthern mountainous province of Cao Bang of Vietnam; extending the memorandumof understanding (MoU) on the financial sector; and negotiating to add termsrelated to information exchange to the two countries’ agreement on double taxation avoidance.

Notably, the ministers will negotiate and sign MoUs on cooperation between theState Bank of Vietnam and the UAE Central Bank, as well as cultural cooperation;in addition to negotiating the signing of an agreement to recognise thecertificate of professional qualifications for sailors under the International Convention on Standards of Training,Certification, and Watchkeeping for Seafarers amended in 1978 and 1979.

They will discuss in detail measures to enhance cooperation in attracting investmentand share experiences in the field of renewable energy and technologies toimprove efficiency and save energy.

The ministers will also co-chair the Vietnam-UAE Business Forum later in theafternoon as part of the meeting’s framework.

The forum is said to be a good chance for Vietnamese firms to directly meet andseek cooperation opportunities with UAE partners in the fields of trade,industry, banking, logistics, and infrastructure.

According to the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s Department of Asian-African Markets, the UAE has a population of over 6million people with a favorable geographical position for the transshipment ofgoods to countries between the Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia.

The UAE is currently the third largest re-export centre in the world and amarket with great purchasing power and high solvency, as well as great importdemand for agricultural products, seafood, and processed products.

The country is the biggest importer of Vietnam in the Middle East and Africa. In2018, two-way trade turnover hit 5.76 billion USD, of which 5.2 billion USD wasVietnamese exports.–VNA