“No matter where they are, Vietnamese communities abroad always turn their hearts to the homeland, and pledge to make further contributions to the development of a civilised and prosperous country”. Those are the emotional words shared by Mr. Bao Hoa (overseas Vietnamese in the U.S.) and Mrs. Cecile Le Pham (overseas Vietnamese in France).

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs cum Chairwoman of the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang (middle) awarding Certificates of Merit from the Minister of Foreign Affairs to Mrs. Cecile Le Pham (2nd, right) and Mr. Bao Hoa (first, left) for their many positive contributions to the city's socio-economic development in 2023. Photo: T. PHUONG

A huge and valuable resource

Politburo’s Resolution No.36-NQ/TW on overseas Vietnamese (OV) affirms that OV are an inseparable part and a resource of the Vietnamese nation.

Nearly 15 years ago, after his retirement, Mr. Bao Hoa decided to return to his hometown of Da Nang to settle down long-term and do business. In 2013, he founded the Caracoli CRC Company, now renamed Vinatech Connect Company.

Mr. Hoa confided “The Vietnamese communities abroad have always been looking towards the fatherland. Like myself, whatever I understand and know, I want to bring back to Da Nang or Viet Nam as a whole to support the Vietnamese people”.

Mr. Hoa said that there is no other place in Viet Nam that boasts the favourable natural conditions, complete infrastructure, and the dynamic development as Da Nang.

Currently, the city is focusing on attracting foreign investment in the fields of industry and hi-tech. Therefore, in 2023, Mr. Hoa connected and introduced Intex Industries Company and Unitex Wan Guan Technology Company Limited to invest in the Hoa Khanh Industrial Park.

As a Vice Chairman of the city's OV Business Club, he acts as a bridge to share information and understanding of economics, trade and society in Da Nang as well as experiences with OV who intend to expand their business activities in Da Nang.

Mrs. Cecile Le Pham, Chairwoman of the Board of Directors of Dacotex Group, cum Vice President of ASSOR, was born in Can Tho but has a lot of affection for the people and land of Da Nang.

She recalled that the storm in 1999 made landfall in Da Nang and caused great damage to the city. She and the relief team of the ASSORV organization (France) came to Da Nang to provide material and medicine support. Since that time, she has fallen in love with the local people and decided to stay in this city.

In 2002, she established the Dacotex Da Nang Co., Ltd., specialising in the garment industry. The company provides jobs with a stable income for about 100 workers.

In addition, Dacotex has opened two branches in Quang Nam and Thua Thien Hue provinces, creating job opportunities for about 1,000 locals. Besides the garment business, she has invested in the hotel sector and opened the Cecile Le Pham Museum of Fine Arts in Hue City.

Along with that, she has established the Hoa Mai Orphanage Centre based in Ngu Hanh Son District. Over the past 22 years of operation, the centre has helped thousands of orphans pursue their dream of going to school.

Every year, she and the ASSOR Organization have spent more than VND 1 billion on caring for and nurturing orphans at the centre.

OV resources are very important for the city's development, especially experts, scientists, and technicians in the fields of semiconductor and artificial intelligence (AI).

Currently, the city has gradually mobilised OV experts and intellectuals to participate in programmes and projects in many fields, acting as a bridge to promote international cooperation and develop friendly relations between the city and foreign localities.

Among them, some overseas intellectuals have typical cooperation programmes with the city in the field of science and technology such as Mr. Nguyen Dang Khoa (OV from the US) consulting and supporting the establishment of the city's Microchip Design Centre, Prof. Dr. Le Thanh Nhan (OV from France) implementing research on the application of LoRa wireless technology, AI in the deployment of smart applications in Da Nang, and Prof. Dr. Nguyen Truong Hai (OV from the U.S.) supporting the teaching of training courses for software engineers at information technology enterprises in the city.

Attracting OV in key sectors

Currently, Da Nang has about 8,000 OV, mainly living in the US. Deputy Director of the municipal Department of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Thuy Anh said that the city has been concentrating on developing 5 key sectors of high-quality service tourism associated with resort real estate; sea ​​economy and seaport associated with logistics services; high-tech industry associated with building creative urban areas and startups; information technology, electronics, telecommunications industries associated with the digital economy; and high-tech agricultural products and fisheries.

Top priority is being given to attracting businesses and corporations in the fields of semiconductors and AI to invest in the city, she added.

Therefore, the municipal Department of Foreign Affairs has actively coordinated with other sectors to invite OV who hold important positions at Intel Corporation and Synopsys International Limited to return to the country and sign Memoranda of Understanding with the Da Nang Semiconductor and Artificial Intelligence Center for Research and Training (DSAC). The signing ceremony took place at the 'Meet Da Nang 2024' held in January 2024, aiming to promote cooperation in training human resources for semiconductor and AI in the city. 

The Department of Foreign Affairs has also proactively contacted, connected and worked with a number of OV associations such as the Association of Vietnamese Scientists and Experts (AVSE Global). AVSE Global is a non-profit organisation based in Paris, France, gathering intellectuals, senior experts, and prestigious scientists in many fields on a global scale.

In mid-August 2024, the delegation of AVSE Global paid a visit to Da Nang to learn about the city's projects calling for investment, its foreign direct investment (FDI) attraction strategy, and its orientation in the field of high-end tourism combined with ports, creative cultural industry and innovation ecosystem, as well as to connect Da Nang's resources with the international community.

Along with that, the Department has closely cooperated with the Viet Nam - Korea Businessmen and Investment Association (VKBIA) chaired by Mr. Tran Hai Linh (OV in South Korea). Thanks to the cooperation, Da Nang had the opportunity to participate in the trade promotion fair in Siheung City, Gyeonggi Province in 2024. Meanwhile, a delegation of Gangwon Province visited Da Nang to learn about the investment environment in 2022.

According to Mrs. Nguyen Thuy Anh, the municipal Department of Foreign Affairs coordinated with the HCMC Committee for Overseas Vietnamese to organise a seminar in HCMC in August 2022 for the first time in a bid to introduce OV to Da Nang’s investment environment.

As a result, the Foxlink Group in Taiwan (China) was called upon to invest in the Da Nang Hi-Tech Park through the support of Mrs. Ngo Pham Tran, an OV in Taiwan (China).

The project was granted an investment registration certificate at the ceremony held in the city in November 2023 to announce the city’s planning for the 2021-2030 period, with a vision to 2050.

The city is now home to about 60 enterprises with investment capital flows channeled from OV.

Mrs. Nguyen Thuy Anh said that in the coming time, to attract OV resources for the city's development, the municipal Department of Foreign Affairs will continue to advise authorities at all levels to perfect OV-related policies and laws, especially in the fields of nationality, real estate, investment, and high-quality human resources.

Heed will be on simplifying processes, procedures, and policies related to OV to increase their trust and accessibility to return home to invest, work, and live.

Also, importance will be attached to building and perfecting data on Vietnamese people abroad, as well as promoting connections and introducing overseas intellectual delegations and OV investors to cooperate with Da Nang.

In addition, the municipal Department of Foreign Affairs plans to coordinate with Vietnamese diplomatic representative agencies abroad to regularly update information on the city’s socio-economic situation, policies and guidelines for Vietnamese people abroad

Reporting by THANH PHUONG - Translating by M.DUNG