The Korea-Vietnam Economic Cooperation Forum 2022 to highlight elevated bilateral ties

- In-person event to take place on Dec. 16 at InterContinental Hanoi Landmark72
- Some 500 participants expected from political, business circles of Korea, Vietnam

SEOUL, South Korea, Dec. 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Korea-Vietnam Economic Cooperation Forum 2022 is hosting a series of special speeches and panel discussions on Dec. 16 from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. at Grand Ballroom, InterContinental Hanoi Landmark72 in Hanoi, Vietnam. The event is co-hosted by Herald Corp., publisher of The Korea Herald and Herald Business, the Korea International Trade Association, the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the Vietnam-Korea Friendship Association.

The event will be held under the tagline of "Great Together, Next Prosperity 100!" aimed at discussing shared prosperity of Korea and Vietnam of the coming century that could be building on top of the 30 years of economic ties.

The Korea-Vietnam Economic Cooperation Forum 2022 expects to host more than 500 participants from political and business circles in Korea and Vietnam, including Rep. Kim Tae-nyeon of the Democratic Party, who heads Korea-Vietnam Parliamentary Friendship Group; North Chungcheong Province Gov. Kim Young-hwan; North Gyeongsang Province Gov. Lee Cheol-woo; Korean Ambassador to Vietnam Oh Young-ju; Hanoi Mayor Tran Sy Thanh; Tran Duy Dong, deputy minister of Planning and Investment of Vietnam; and Ngo Dong Hai, secretary of the Thai Binh Provincial Party Committee.

The forum comes against the backdrop of a strong partnership that Korea and Vietnam has built over the course of three decades since they established the economic ties in December 1992. Korea's trade volume with Vietnam rose 162-fold from $493 million in 1992 to $80.7 billion until 2021. Economic and cultural exchanges in both public and private sectors are thriving, as Vietnam designated the Korean language as one of the major foreign-language electives in 2021.

The event will also invoke discussions over ways to nurture new business opportunities at multiple angles, as Korea and Vietnam are stepping up its bilateral efforts by elevating their ties to comprehensive strategic partnership.

A keynote speech under the theme, "Taking Korea-Vietnam economic ties to the next level" will be delivered by Jeong Man-ki, vice chairman of the Korea International Trade Association. This will be succeeded by a special speech of Thai Binh Provincial Party Committee Secretary Ngo Dong Hai, which will revolve around ways for direct economic cooperation between provincial governments of Korea and Vietnam. Also delivering special speeches are governors of Korean provinces over blueprints for enhanced cooperation with Vietnamese counterparts, involving a nature-based tourism development project by North Chungcheong Province and a metaverse push to attract hallyu fans by North Gyeongsang Province.

Other notable speakers at the panel discussions are thought-leaders such as Choi Joo-ho, president of Samsung Vietnam; Bui Quang Tuan, director general of the Vietnam Institute of Economics; Han Seung, head of overseas development group at Daewoo E&C; Kim Chun-jin, president of the Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corp.; and Cho Bong-hyun, vice president of Industrial Bank of Korea.

"Korea and Vietnam is ready to open the new era together based on the strong friendship and trust built over the past 30 years. The forum will lay the basis for the joint prosperity and invite intriguing ideas to outrun competitors in the global power rivalry," The Korea Herald Chief Executive Officer Choi Jin-young said.

The forum will be followed by a networking event. Hosted by Vu Tien Loc, president of Vietnam-Korea Friendship Association, the night event will also feature a Vietnamese traditional folk performance and performance by Korean-Vietnamese singer Hari Won and Korean singer Lee Sun-hee.