On Wednesday, the Da Nang People’s Committee Vice Chairman, Mr Dang Viet Dung, played host to some businesspeople from Japan, and representatives from the Foundation for International Development/Relief (FIDR) led by its Chairman Nobuhiro Iijima.

Chairman Iijima (left) and Vice Chairman Dung

During the reception, Vice Chairman Dung said, “Da Nang has been paying special attention to developing high quality services in tourism, trade and hi-tech, as well as building a synchronous infrastructure system to attract more foreign investors”.

He also spoke highly of the fruitful results from the numerous bilateral cooperation programmes with some Japanese localities over recent years.  He remarked that a number of bilateral industrial, cultural and tourism cooperation projects with Japan would be implemented in the city soon.  Included are the 1.2ha Viet Nam-Japan friendship cultural park in Ngu Hanh Son District, and a specialised industrial park for Japanese businesses.

Mr Dung praised FIDR for having effectively implemented their practical education and healthcare support projects in the city since 1998.  He vowed that the local authorities would create very favourable conditions for the Japanese organisation to implement other similar projects in the city in the years ahead.

In reply, Chairman Iijima said that FIDR deployed 17 projects in the city over the 1998 - 2011 period.  The focus was on building schools, buying medical equipment, providing healthcare services for poor local women and children, dealing with the impacts of natural disasters, and promoting socio-economic development in some local districts.  He underlined that his organisation will carry out more rescue and relief training activities in the city in the near future.

FIDR, a non-governmental organisation based in Japan, specialises in implementing programmes to improve people’s living conditions with a focus on the wellbeing of children and socio-economic advancement of a region.  So far, over 40 projects in education, healthcare and relief aspects have been implemented in Da Nang and elsewhere in the central region and highlands.