Monceau said that activities during the visit took place as scheduled, thanking the Vietnamese side for creating favourable conditions for the OIF delegation throughout the visit.
He said that during the visit, the delegation successfully held two Vietnam-Francophone business forums in Ho Chi Minh City on March 21-23 and Hanoi on March 24-25, aiming to introduce strategic orientations, business opportunities and the business and investment environment in Vietnam.
Within the forum’s framework, a number of direct meetings were held between businesses of both sides, along with trips to local firms and exchanges among enterprises of Vietnam and the Francophone community.
So far, the OIF has received positive feedback from the participating parties, he said, adding that businesses, chambers of commerce and industry and banks from the Francophone community showed their pleasure when reaching many agreements with Vietnamese partners.
Specifically, many framework agreements were signed in different sectors, including agriculture and digital technology.
Monceau said that through the forums, the OIF set up connections not only between businesses from Vietnam and the OIF but also among enterprises in the Francophone community.
The success of the first visit by the OIF economic and trade promotion delegation also paves the way for more visits in the future, he said, revealing that three months later, a similar delegation will visit Central Africa.
Reaffirming the selection of Vietnam as the first destination for the delegation, Monceau underlined that Vietnam plays an important role in the Francophone community and in Asia-Pacific region. He noted that 25 years ago, Hanoi successfully hosted the seventh Francophone Summit, marking the birth of the OIF. The launch of the Asia-Pacific Office of the OIF in Hanoi and a French language training centre in Ho Chi Minh City showed a strong commitment from the OIF to Vietnam.
He held that the fruitful results of the talks between Vietnamese Foreign Minister Bui Thanh Son and Louise Mushikiwabo, along with the OIF leader’s meetings with President Nguyen Xuan Phuc and leaders of ministries and sectors of Vietnam contributed to reinforcing and developing the deep, dynamic and positive partnership between the French-speaking community and Vietnam.
As scheduled, Mushikiwabo and the OIF delegation will attend a ceremony commemorating the International Francophone Day and 25 years of Vietnam’s hosting of the seventh Francophone Summit on March 25 night. On March 26, the delegation will leave Vietnam for Phnom Penh.
