Vietnam, Singapore boost ties in digital economy, sustainable development

Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his Singaporean counterpart Lee Hsien Loong agreed Thursday that the two countries will establish partnerships in the digital economy and green economy during their talks in the island state.

The two leaders agreed to strengthen green economic cooperation via a memorandum of understanding (MoU) drawn up the same day to further boost the multi-faceted cooperation, particularly in the digital economy and green economy. Chinh is on his first official visit to Singapore in three days since assuming office in 2021.

The two sides will promote sharing of management experience, initiatives and platforms in digital transformation on three pillars - digital government, digital economy, and digital society. Singapore will support Vietnam in building a digital platform and promoting digital transformation in priority areas, such as population management, finance and banking, land administration, and e-commerce.

Regarding the green economy, the island state will support Vietnam in its energy transition towards carbon neutrality by 2050. Singapore is keen to work with Vietnam in renewable energy, carbon credits and sustainable infrastructure to support the latter's goal of achieving net-zero carbon emission.

Describing economic cooperation as a “key pillar” of the bilateral relationship, PM Lee praised Vietnam for its “remarkable” economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. Last year, Vietnam’s gross domestic product expanded by 8.02%, a feat that made it one of the world’s fastest growing economies in 2022.

In his speech, PM Lee talked about the Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Parks (VSIPs), which he hailed as “concrete symbols” of the cooperation between the two ASEAN member states, Singapore’s The Business Times reported.

He was quoted by the newspaper as saying that there are many opportunities for the two counties to work together in new areas in the years to come, citing the digital economy, cybersecurity, renewable energy, carbon credits, and sustainable infrastructure.

Lee added that the VSIPs have “grown tremendously in scale and number” since the first project was launched in 1996. Today, there are 12 VSIP parks across northern, central and southern Vietnam, and together they have attracted $17 billion in investments and created over 300,000 jobs.

PM Chinh proposed Singapore consider the possibility of signing a labor cooperation agreement between the two countries; increase the import of agricultural and aquatic products, and garment and textiles from Vietnam; and facilitate the selling of Vietnamese goods in the distribution system in Singapore, according to the Vietnam News Agency (VNA).

With a stable political system and an increasingly improved investment environment, Vietnam welcomes and creates favorable conditions for Singaporean businesses to expand their investment in the country, especially in digital transformation, green energy, science and technology, and innovation, the VNA reported.

After the talks, the two leaders witnessed the signing and hand-over of cooperation documents, including the MoU on the establishment of the Vietnam-Singapore partnership on digital economy and green economy; another on a cooperation plan in economics and trade between the two ministries of Industry and Trade; the one on youth cooperation between the National Committee on Youth of Vietnam and the National Youth Council of Singapore; and an MoU on maritime cooperation between the Vietnam Maritime Administration and the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore.