Vietnamese Minister of Home Affairs Phạm Thị Thanh Trà and the Republic of Korea's Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min signed a memorandum of understanding on public administration cooperation on Monday. — VNA/VNS Photo Khánh Vân

SEOUL — Vietnamese Minister of Home Affairs Phạm Thị Thanh Trà and the Republic of Korea's Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min agreed to strengthen cooperation in public administration between the two agencies during their working session in Seoul on Monday.

Between now and the year’s end, both sides plan to hold a seminar on government innovation in response to global challenges.

The Republic of Korea (RoK) will increase information sharing to assist Việt Nam in administrative reform, state governance, and restructuring of local authorities.

Trà highlighted Việt Nam's significant achievements despite an uncertain geopolitical landscape, saying that the country has maintained macroeconomic stability, controlled inflation, ensured major economic balances, and achieved a 6.42 per cent growth rate in the first half of 2024.

She noted substantial progress in Việt Nam's strategic breakthroughs, including institutional building, administrative reform, and infrastructure development, particularly in transportation and digital infrastructure, stressing that these efforts have elevated the country's prestige and position on the global stage.

According to her, both sides have actively shared information regarding public sector reform, good governance and government renewal; and organised ministerial-level roundtable discussions on civil service reform and training.

The Korean side has hosted numerous delegations from the Vietnamese Ministry of Home Affairs for short-term training courses, aiding Việt Nam in promoting administrative and civil service reform, administration modernisation, digital transformation, and e-government.

Lee underlined the RoK's recent focus on public administration reform aimed at better serving citizens.

To this end, the country has accelerated the application of information technology, enhanced digital transformation capabilities, and trained and improved the capacity of civil servants.

The RoK has adopted numerous reforms at both central and local government levels, advancing digital transformation and raising the capacity of digital government.

During a working session with the Vietnamese Embassy in the RoK in the morning of the same day, Trà expressed her hope that embassy will serve as a bridge to boost bilateral cooperation in the fields of the RoK’s expertise, such as digital transformation, e-government, state governance, smart city management models, and quality human resources training. — VNS