On Wednesday, the Da Nang People’s Committee Chairman, Mr Huynh Duc Tho, and the Director of the International Technical Cooperation Division of the Policy Bureau in Japan’s Yokohama City, Mr Tetsuya Nakajima, signed an extended Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on bilateral technical cooperation between the two cities.

Under the agreement, the focus will be on fostering bilateral economic cooperation, especially in urban development, on the basis of equality, mutual benefit, and respecting the current laws of each locality.  Joint efforts will be made to call for financial assistance from the governments of the two countries, and international organisations, to implement their technical cooperation projects, as well as to appeal for more investment from Da Nang and Japanese businesses.  In addition, Yokohama City will give technical assistance to Da Nang in order to develop it into an eco-city and to build environmentally-friendly industrial zones. 

Director Tetsuya Nakajima (left) and Chairman Tho (Photo: cadn.com.vn)

The Da Nang Department of Planning and Investment and the International Cooperation Office of the Yokohama Department of Foreign Affairs will be the key units which will take responsibility for monitoring their bilateral cooperation projects.

Also at the signing ceremony, some experts from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) proposed to the city’s leaders some solutions to enhance Da Nang’s urban infrastructure development and management.  The purpose is to ensure Da Nang’s sustainable development and to help the city enhance its competitiveness thanks to its strategic infrastructure development. Heed will be paid to building major traffic axes and urban infrastructure, and facilitating Da Nang’s private businesses to invest in local technical infrastructure construction projects.

In reply, Chairman Tho said “I am very grateful to the Yokohama authorities and JICA for your great efforts in connecting Da Nang and Japanese localities.  Many forums have been successfully organised in my city.  They have focused on boosting Da Nang’s urban development and sharing Yokohama’s valuable experiences in urban development and management with my city.”

The city leader asked his guests to continue their assistance for Da Nang in order to make it an environmentally-friendly and dynamic city in the central region and highlands.