On October 21, Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee Phan Van Mai met with Finnish Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Ville Tavio.
Currently, the trade turnover between Ho Chi Minh City and Finland in 2023 has reached over 35 million USD. Finland has 24 investment projects in the city, with a total registered capital of nearly 27 million USD, ranking 36th out of 122 countries and territories investing in Ho Chi Minh City.
In addition to promoting economic and trade cooperation, Chairman Phan Van Mai expressed hope that Ville Tavio would support businesses in Ho Chi Minh City in connecting and cooperating with Finnish partners to invest in projects that build an ecosystem for startup innovation, enhance capacity, transfer technology, share experience in sustainable urban planning, and develop a resilient, green economy that uses clean energy and combats climate change.
"The city is currently developing policies for green transformation for businesses while seeking funds for green growth and promoting a circular economy model aimed at reusing and recycling resources. The city encourages businesses to adopt environmentally friendly and socially responsible solutions, along with numerous activities to enhance capacity and raise community awareness," Chairman Phan Van Mai added.
Minister Ville Tavio highly appreciated the Green Forum and hoped it would connect Finnish businesses with Viet Nam. He noted that Finland is a global leader in wastewater treatment. He emphasized the importance of expanding cooperation in environmental management, high-quality human resource training, and economic collaboration.
Currently, Ho Chi Minh City and Tampere (Finland) are moving towards signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cooperation, which will further strengthen the partnership between the two cities and Finland.