German Government highly values development cooperation with Vietnam: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Prime Minister Pham MInh Cinh hold a press conference to announce the outcomes of the talks. (Photo: WVR/Nguyen Hong)

In reply to German lawmakers’ questions about bilateral development cooperation, the German Government said it has chosen Vietnam as one of the eight global partners, along with Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Peru and South Africa, which altogether account for 45% of the global population.

The partnerships are significant to find common solutions to global issues in the future for sustainable and inclusive development with carbon neutrality and resilience, it noted.

In development cooperation, Germany is also stepping up the use of “triangular cooperation” model, known as trilateral cooperation, in order to boost joint work more strategically toward protecting global public goods such as climate or tropical forests.

The German Government highly evaluated Vietnam's strong economic development over the past three decades. If in 1993, 80% of the country’s population lived in poverty, this figure was reduced to 5% in 2020. This positive outcome was attributed to the reform and opening of the market to foreign investors and the adoption of private property rights.

With its outstanding economic development and its role as an influential member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the German Government considers Vietnam to have global and regional importance.

It is necessary to cooperate with Vietnam to provide goods and solve future global problems, such as combating climate change, protecting forests, conserving biodiversity, and maintaining sustainable supply chains and economic development.

Regarding cooperation with Vietnam, the German Government said that it has provided over 1.5 billion EUR (1.6 billion USD) in official development assistance (ODA) to Vietnam under the "triangular cooperation” since 2018. In 2021, the German Government committed to providing 152 million EUR in development and technical cooperation aid to Vietnam.

Seven bilateral projects within the framework of the International Climate Initiative are being implemented with a total value of about 25.4 million EUR, focusing on climate-related policy consultancy on greenhouse gas reduction, adapting to the impacts of climate change and conserving biodiversity.

The Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety is funding a 11-million-EUR project on combating marine waste in Vietnam. In addition to three bilateral projects with a total planned capital of 39 million EUR under preparation, Vietnam will receive a total funding of about 64 million EUR from Germany for three regional projects and two global projects.

German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier affirmed that Vietnam is an important partner of Germany in Southeast Asia as well as the Asia-Pacific region. (Photo: WVR)

Overall, the German Government regarded development cooperation with Vietnam as "successful", and the quality of cooperation and the effectiveness of the "triangular cooperation" with Vietnam as "very good".

The German development policies play an important role in strengthening political ties with ASEAN in areas including environment-climate-and-energy policy, good governance, vocational training, connectivity, international law, rules-based international order, and human rights.

Germany also advocates further promoting economic cooperation with Vietnam, through existing mechanisms such as the Vietnam-Germany Joint Committee for Economic Cooperation, especially since the EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA) took effect in 2020.

Vietnam is also a key destination when Germany seeks to diversify its supply chain. Vietnam's energy transition is supported in a socially equitable manner.

The German Government also assessed that Germany's development cooperation has contributed to supporting Vietnam's economy opening over the years, helping the country with sustainable development, sustainable energy transition, resilience to climate change and disease prevention and control.

During his Vietnam visit in mid-November 2022, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz hailed Vietnam’s role and position in Germany’s strategy on Indo-Pacific.

He also wished to help Vietnam achieve net zero emissions, adding that Germany also supports Vietnam in ASEAN’s activities, thus further propelling the cooperative partnership between Germany and ASEAN.