Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh attended a discussion with Brazilian businesses during his visit to Brazil in September 2023. (Photo: CT)

Countries from the Global South, committed to peace, multilateralism, sustainable development and the fight against hunger, Brazil and Vietnam celebrate 35 years of diplomatic relations in 2024 with the relaunch of bilateral cooperation. The first step was taken with the visit of the Prime Minister of Vietnam, Pham Minh Chinh, to Brazil in September this year.

Vietnam's economic and social advances in the last decade are impressive. With 100 million inhabitants and robust economic growth, the country has objectives and challenges similar to those of Brazil, which contributes to joint action on topics of interest on the international scene.

The geopolitical situation marked by crises of different natures, such as regional conflicts, extreme weather events, health emergencies and food insecurity, has required the deepening of international cooperation. It is in this complex context that Brazil acts pragmatically to consolidate traditional relationships and seek new partnerships.

President Lula's Government is interested that one of the pillars of the Brazil-Vietnam relationship be based on science, technology and innovation, where we see extraordinary potential. In this area, we have the prospect of advancing joint initiatives in digital transformation, semiconductors, quantum technologies, Artificial Intelligence, renewable energy and innovative environments, with a focus on startups.

Brazil’s Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation Luciana Santos. (Source: camara.leg.br)

Brazil has implemented a set of actions to master the scientific, technological and productive knowledge. Few countries in the world have specific policies to favor strategic sectors such as semiconductors. To this end, our government is investing in the resumption of the National Center for Advanced Electronic Technology S.A-Ceitec, a public development and manufacturing of chips, with the goal of overcoming production and technological gaps.

In this sense, cooperation with Vietnam constitutes an opportunity for both countries to seek a proud and sovereign participation in the global semiconductor and advanced component chains.

This is the objective of my visit to Vietnam, to participate in meetings with government authorities, academic and research institutions and technology parks. We want to use international cooperation and science and innovation to address major national and global challenges and promote the transfer of high technology to other developing countries. We understand that we will only achieve peace and prosperity if we are able to reduce global asymmetries in access to science, technology and innovation, so that the benefits can be felt by all humanity.