On the evening of February 22, in Hanoi, Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son chaired the Conference to deploy economic diplomacy tasks in 2024 to serve socio-economic development. (Photo: WVR/Tuan Anh)

The Conference was attended by Deputy Ministers of Foreign Affairs Ha Kim Ngoc, Le Thi Thu Hang, Nguyen Minh Hang; Assistant Minister Nguyen Minh Vu; Heads of units in the Ministry, Heads of Vietnam’s Representative Missions abroad for the term 2024-2027, and 94 Vietnamese Representative Missions abroad participated online. Deputy Minister Nguyen Minh Hang, Head of the Economic Diplomacy Steering Committee, moderated the discussion.

Speaking at the orientation, Minister Son said that the Conference was organized to implement the Government's requirements, the Prime Minister's directives, and the Action Program of the 32nd Diplomatic Conference regarding economic diplomacy to serve development.

From there, identify tasks that needed to be implemented in 2024 and discuss solutions to enhance the effectiveness of economic diplomacy implementation. The Conference focuses on exchanging views on tasks to be done in 2024, especially ideas to create breakthrough and make practical contributions to socio-economic development of the country.

According to Minister Son, the world and regional situation in 2024 continues to become complicated, and new fluctuations may arise. The global economy in 2024 is forecast to be more stable but still experiencing slow, unevenly growth with many risks and challenges.

Domestically, the socio-economic situation in January continued the positive recovery trend from the last months of 2023 and achieved significant results, especially in terms of exports and investment. International organizations, businesses, and foreign investors continue to evaluate positively and have high expectations for Vietnam's socio-economic development prospects. However, there are still many challenges domestically, including limited competitiveness and resilience of the economy, along with difficulties in key export and import markets...

Vietnamese Representative Missions abroad participated online. (Photo: Tuan Anh)

Building on the significant historical achievements, creating new opportunities for development, and enhancing the country's prestige and position achieved in 2023, foreign affairs and economic diplomacy continue to contribute to the nation's overall achievements, Minister Son stressed.

In January alone, Vietnam successfully organized the Prime Minister's trip to attend the WEF Davos 2024 and official visits to Hungary and Romania; welcomed five high-level delegations (the delegations of the Presidents of Germany, Indonesia, the Philippines, the Prime Minister of Laos, and Speaker of the Bulgarian National Assembly), with many important agreements signed.

At the Conference, Ms. Doan Phuong Lan, Head of the Economic Affairs Department, Deputy Head of the Economic Diplomacy Steering Committee, presented a report on the key economic diplomacy tasks for 2024 and solutions to enhance the effectiveness of economic diplomacy implementation.

Heads of Vietnamese Representative Missions abroad, as well as Heads of units, focused their discussions on three main topics, such as promoting new growth drivers to serve strategic breakthroughs; innovating traditional growth drivers; enhancing the effectiveness of economic diplomacy with a focus on reviewing international agreements and commitments.

Participants have identified the content, focuses, and driving forces that need to be promoted, including elevating and upgrading relations with major partners, key partners, following sectoral cooperation in the recent time; proposing and agreeing on key economic diplomacy tasks for 2024 based on closely following the country's development needs, local situations, and the orientations of the Government, the Prime Minister, and the 32nd Diplomatic Conference.

Deputy Foreign Minister Nguyen Minh Hang, Head of the Economic Diplomacy Steering Committee speaks at the event. (Photo: Tuan Anh)

Participants also discussed solutions to enhance the effectiveness of economic diplomacy, with a key focus in 2024 being to concentrate on accelerating agreements with partners, especially in new areas such as semiconductors, high technology, innovation, and green transformation...

In his closing remarks, Foreign Minister Son affirmed that 2024 is a pivotal year, with crucial significance for successfully implementing the Socio-Economic Development Strategy for the 2021-2025 period, laying an important foundation for the upcoming 14th National Party Congress.

Welcoming and appreciating the opinions of Heads of diplomatic missions and unit leaders within the Ministry, the Foreign Minister proposed that unit heads and Heads of diplomatic missions closely adhere to the Government's socio-economic directives and the practical needs of domestic sectors, industries, regions, and enterprises.

Consequently, the focus should be on mobilizing resources from all units and diplomatic missions to serve the strategic breakthroughs; revitalizing traditional growth drivers and effectively exploiting new growth drivers to make economic diplomacy a strong force for the country's rapid and sustainable development.

Minister Son emphasized three key groups of tasks for economic diplomacy in 2024 as follows: Firstly, consolidating traditional growth drivers and efficiently exploiting new growth drivers. Secondly, enhancing efficiency and innovation in research, advisory, and forecasting work. Thirdly, improving the effectiveness of economic diplomacy and the coordinating role of the Economic Diplomacy Steering Committee.

To fulfill these key tasks, the Foreign Minister proposed focusing on areas such as Leveraging traditional growth drivers to expand export opportunities and attract high-quality investments; Reviewing, accelerating, and implementing international commitments and agreements in foreign affairs activities; Actively making research, advisory work, evaluating, and forecasting the international economic situation; Aligning economic diplomacy activities closely with local development and business interests; Continuing to effectively organize the comprehensive implementation, review, and assessment of Party, Government, and Ministry directives on economic diplomacy...

In the coming time, the tasks for foreign affairs in general, and economic diplomacy in particular, will be more demanding, difficult, and challenging, "requiring us to be extremely proactive, innovative, and creative in our thinking and actions" to fulfill the tasks assigned by the Party, the State, and the Government to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Minister emphasized.