Viet Nam, Slovakia celebrate friendship
Slovakian Ambassador Peter Svitek spoke to Viet Nam News on the occasion of Slovakia's National Day today
Viet Nam and Slovakia this year celebrated the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations. How do you evaluate the current ties between the two countries?  |
Ambassador Peter Svitek. |
Slovakia is proud to commemorate such a rare and long-lasting friendship between our two countries, manifested through a history of mutual respect, understanding and a lively exchange of ideas, culture and commerce. Relations between Slovakia and Viet Nam were established amid historically trying times for both countries, therefore, it is fitting that our co-operation intensifies in the current period of remarkable progress – both Slovakia and Viet Nam have the privilege to pride themselves with having some of the fastest growing economies in the world.
The current period is characterised by an unprecedented growth in bilateral relations that gained a new intensity after the visit of the President of the Slovak Republic Ivan Gasparovic to Viet Nam in 2006 and the reopening of the Embassy of Slovakia in Ha Noi in 2008. Consequently, three important high level visits followed, firstly the Slovak Prime Minister's visit to Viet Nam in 2008, followed by Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet's visit to Slovakia in December 2009, as well as the most recent visit of the Speaker of the Slovak National Council in January 2010. We are also pleased to have a uniquely vigorous co-operation at ministerial level, as our ministers frequently hold joint meetings in order to help bring together entrepreneurs in the interests of bilateral co-operation. Another landmark achievement in our relations is the upcoming opening of the Vietnamese Embassy in Bratislava, which gives to our mutual relationship a new dimension and creates more possibilities for the growth of co-operation in various fields.
Slovakia last year decided to add Viet Nam to its priority list of countries receiving official assistance in 2010. Can you tell our readers more about the ODA package and what fields it covers?
The Government of the Slovak Republic has recently opened the door to co-operation with Viet Nam in development and humanitarian sectors. Through the activities of Slovakian NGOs, Slovakia will positively contribute to enhancing the quality of Vietnamese people's lives.
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Hodzovo Square is a popular meeting place. — File Photos |
Slovakia's operations in Viet Nam commenced at the beginning of this year with the financial support from the Slovak Official Development Assistance (ODA) – Slovak Aid, being the main donor of the projects. The activities primarily include the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT) and HIV paediatric patients. Secondly, Slovak Aid also focuses on providing the best practice for the improvement of the business environment in Viet Nam, targeting small and medium sized enterprises.
The first project is a comprehensive package that includes medical and psycho-social care for HIV positive pregnant women, their newborn infants and HIV positive children. Slovakia provides support to three hospitals in Ha Noi – the National Hospital of Paediatrics, Ha Noi Obstetric and Gynaecology Hospital and the National Hospital of Gynaecology. The project also provides financial support to the PMTCT patients to make all the necessary services more accessible.
Ninety-six per cent of children born to HIV positive mothers are negative at the end of our programme, a fact that shows the great effectiveness of the PMTCT model.
The second "A Bridge of Business Reforms" project, builds on the knowledge transfers in the area of business environment reforms, including small and medium size enterprises (SMEs). It is in line with "The Midterm Strategy for ODA of the SR for 2009-13", in which the two main goals of the project are the establishment of adequate tools to strengthen the quality of the business environment in Viet Nam, especially in central Quang Nam Province and to boost the support for SMEs.
We believe that the creation of partnerships between institutions in Quang Nam and Slovak organisations in terms of the business environment and SME development will improve economic and social relations between Viet Nam and Slovakia.
The service industry accounts for more than 60 per cent of Slovakia's economic structure, while Viet Nam still lags in this field. Can Slovakia share its experiences with Viet Nam?
Slovakia at a glance Area: 49 030sq.km Population: 5 411 062 (Eurostat 2009) Language: Slovak Currency: Euro since 1 January 2009 (formerly Slovak koruna SKK) Flag: The official flag of the Slovak Republic is com posed of three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue (middle), and red (red) superimposed with the Slovak emblem centred on the hoist side. |
Indeed Slovakia has gone through an extensive transformation of its service sector in the last 20 years and especially after the 2002 reforms. Notable growth areas in the service sector include banking and insurance, retail and tourism. Established multinational corporations also took advantage of the positive investment climate and decided to build customer support centres and regional and international business centres.
Our success lies in utilising a mix of factors which Viet Nam could easily emulate in the coming years. Slovakia is endowed with a favourable geographic position in the heart of Europe and a dynamic labour force, with good command of foreign languages. Our membership of an extraterritorial organisation such as the EU, and a politically stable government has helped ensure the equilibrium necessary to encourage long-term investment in services. Innumerable countries including Viet Nam share these characteristics. By adopting economically liberal policies, Slovakia managed to set itself apart from others, guaranteeing an unambiguous tax system, government stimuli for foreign investors and complete foreign ownership of companies operating within our borders.
Slovakia is glad to share the experience it had in developing its services sector with Vietnamese counterparts. The Bank for Investment and Development (BIDV) is actively seeking opportunities for co-operation. Slovak banks have already shared their know-how and positive experiences in this field. The area of tourism also offers extensive grounds for an exchange of experiences, as Slovak developers are seeking opportunities to build resorts in Viet Nam.
During his visit to Viet Nam in January this year, Pavol Paska, Speaker of the Slovak National Council, said he expected to foster co-operation in health care between Viet Nam and Slovakia. How do current ties stand in this matter and what activities are in the pipeline?
Few fields share such a wealth of tradition in mutual co-operation as the field of healthcare. In the 1970s, former Czechoslovakia built and equipped the hospital in the northern port city of Hai Phong and at one point Czechoslovak pharmaceuticals were the most common medicines in Viet Nam. We presently have a range of activities we would like to pursue in this area to build on this tradition.
Slovakia is glad to provide the know-how and guidance in the manufacturing of medical equipment and medical tools to its Vietnamese partners.
We would also like to promote Slovak pharmaceuticals entering the Vietnamese market and we welcome the idea of creating joint ventures.
Recognising that Viet Nam is one of the countries which are most severely affected by climate change, Slovakia is ready to provide some medical products which would considerably ease relief efforts during floods, typhoons or other ecological crises.
Can you talk about co-operation with Viet Nam in the energy sector and infrastructure development, which are some of Slovakia's strengths?
The current economic progress of Viet Nam underlines the need for the development of the energy sector and infrastructure, where Slovakia has the ambition and potential to be of assistance.
The energy sector is one of the main areas of opportunity for Slovakia. Energy experts revealed that Slovak products would match and exceed the needs of the Vietnamese partners. Focus is set primarily on effective coal burning and hydroelectric power plants.
Promising negotiations are underway in helping Viet Nam build its highways and road infrastructure. Slovakia would like to share the positive experiences we had in this field in various foreign countries.
Slovakia also intends to invest in the oil and gas industry utilizing its expertise in building oil refineries, for example upgrading the Dung Quat refinery and oil extraction.
In the effort to bridge Viet Nam with Slovakia and the broader Central Europe region, as well as in strengthening the exchange of goods, the Government of the Slovak Republic has expressed the desire for Viet Nam Airlines to use Bratislava airport as its final destination in flights to Central Europe.
By pursuing the aforementioned activities, we hope that our co-operation and friendship can flourish in a way that corresponds to the potential and interests of both countries. — VNS