Osinbajo heads to Vietnam for trade and bilateral engagements

Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo will on Saturday depart Abuja for the Socialist Republic of Vietnam where he will hold high-level bilateral engagements with the country’s government officials.

In a statement, Laolu Akande, Osinbajo’s spokesman, said the vice-president will meet the country’s President Nguyễn Phúc, Vo Thi Aah Xuan, his Vietnamese counterpart, Prime Minister Pham Chinh, other government officials and business community.

Akande said the vice-president will oversee the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) and agreements on investment between Nigeria and Vietnam.

The statement added that Osinbajo will also hold high-level diplomatic discussions bordering on issues of trade, commerce, agriculture, technology, and innovation among others with his Vietnamese counterpart and the prime minister.

Last year, Luong Quoe, the Vietnamese ambassador to Nigeria, paid a courtesy visit to the vice-president at the presidential villa.

Osinbajo had said both countries discussed specific areas of collaboration, including agriculture and technology.

“There was also talk about cashew processing and rice growing and rice processing where Vietnam has shown great innovation and great success. We think that these are areas where we certainly can do a lot more with cooperation,” Osinbajo had said.

“I know that Vietnam is doing interesting things in the technology and telecoms sectors. I think that we should look for opportunities where young people in Nigeria and Vietnam can interact, especially in technology and share ideas, innovation, and their different attainments.”

Akande said the vice-president’s reciprocal visit to Vietnam was proof of the country’s commitment to strengthening long-standing diplomatic relations.

The spokesman also said Osinbajo would be “the second Nigerian high-ranking incumbent government official to visit the southeast Asian country after President Olusegun Obasanjo who visited in 2005.”

“Prof. Osinbajo will later participate in a business forum with the Vietnamese chamber of commerce with representatives from both countries,” the statement reads.

“With the opportunities existing in agriculture & technology in Nigeria and Vietnam, discussions would focus on mutual benefits from effective collaboration in particular economic sectors so as to deepen the friendly and trade relations of both countries.”

The vice-president is expected to conclude his visit on Wednesday.