President of the National Assembly of Việt Nam Trần Thanh Mẫn (right) and President of the National Assembly of Côte d’Ivoire Patrick Achi pose for a photo prior to their official talks in Hà Nội on August 23. — VNA/VNS Photo Doãn Tấn

HÀ NỘI — National Assembly (NA) President Trần Thanh Mẫn held talks with President of the National Assembly of Côte d’Ivoire Patrick Achi, on Sunday, affirming that parliamentary cooperation should serve as a key pillar and important foundation of bilateral relations.

The talks followed an official welcome ceremony at the NA building in Hà Nội for top legislator Achi, who is leading a high-level delegation from Côte d’Ivoire's parliament on an official visit to Việt Nam during August 23–26.

NA President Mẫn welcomed Achi’s decision to make Việt Nam one of his first destinations in Asia since taking office in January 2026, just four months after the two countries' parliamentary leaders met on the sidelines of the 152nd Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in Türkiye in April.

He said Party General Secretary and President Tô Lâm attaches great importance to and wishes to further advance the positive relations between Việt Nam and Côte d’Ivoire.

Highlighting the Côte d’Ivoire NA’s role in promoting socio-economic stability and development, and Côte d’Ivoire’s position as a leading country in West Africa, Mẫn said parliaments today not only perform legislative and oversight functions but also serve as bridges between peoples while promoting peace, justice and sustainable development.

NA President Mẫn briefed the Côte d’Ivoire delegation on Việt Nam’s major achievements of historic significance after 40 years of Đổi mới (Renewal), as well as key outcomes of the 14th National Party Congress held in early 2026.

He also outlined major orientations for Việt Nam's 16th-tenure NA, particularly efforts to improve legislation and create the most favourable conditions for economic development, contributing to the country’s goal of achieving double-digit growth.

NA President Mẫn welcomed the Côte d’Ivoire NA’s decision to send, for the first time, a delegation led by a Deputy Speaker to study and exchange experience with its Vietnamese counterpart immediately after NA President Achi’s visit.

He proposed that the two sides regard parliamentary cooperation as a key pillar and important foundation of overall bilateral ties, with a focus on effectively implementing the cooperation memorandum between the two legislatures, studying the early establishment of friendship parliamentarian groups in each country, and advancing exchanges of experience in legislation and oversight.

The Vietnamese NA leader welcomed positive developments in bilateral relations, noting that Côte d’Ivoire became Việt Nam’s largest trading partner in Africa in 2025, with two-way trade reaching nearly US$2 billion.

President of the National Assembly Trần Thanh Mẫn welcomed President of the National Assembly of Côte d’Ivoire Patrick Achi. — VNA/VNS Photo Doãn Tấn

He called on the two legislatures to strengthen their role in facilitating and overseeing negotiations, signing and implementation of key agreements, including a framework agreement on cooperation, a double taxation avoidance agreement and an agreement on the promotion and protection of investment.

Achi thanked the Vietnamese NA and people for their warm and friendly reception, and congratulated Việt Nam on its achievements during 40 years of Đổi mới.

He expressed confidence that Việt Nam would continue to successfully realise its centennial development targets through 2030 and towards 2045.

Admiring Việt Nam’s remarkable development achievements under the leadership of the Communist Party of Việt Nam, Achi said Việt Nam’s success was an inspiration for African countries.

He also said that Việt Nam’s development model could offer a path for Côte d’Ivoire to consider in its own nation-building and development process.

Impressed by the contributions of the Vietnamese parliament to national development, as well as its reforms in working methods and the application of science and technology, Achi asked the legislature to share experience in lawmaking and economic development, particularly in agriculture, fisheries, technical and vocational training, public financial management, innovation and parliamentary reform.

The two sides agreed to increase information sharing and keep each other updated on new policies and regulations, particularly those related to imports and exports and foreign investment attraction.

NA President Mẫn expressed his hope that the two legislatures would help build a transparent and stable business environment, facilitate bilateral trade and diversify import and export products, with a view to raising two-way trade to US$3-5 billion or more in the future.

On multilateral cooperation, the two leaders agreed to increase consultations and continue supporting each other at international forums, particularly multilateral parliamentary organisations such as the IPU and the Assemblée Parlementaire de la Francophonie (APF).

National Assembly President Trần Thanh Mẫn and President of the National Assembly of Côte d’Ivoire Patrick Achi visit the archaeological exhibition area beneath the National Assembly building in Hà Nội. — VNA/VNS Photo Doãn Tấn

NA President Mẫn also asked Côte d’Ivoire to support Việt Nam in strengthening substantive relations with the African Union (AU) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

Việt Nam, he said, was ready to serve as a bridge for Côte d’Ivoire to boost connections with ASEAN and its member states.

Achi took the occasion to invite NA President Mẫn to visit Côte d’Ivoire in 2027, together with Vietnamese ministers, leaders of ministries and sectors, and a business delegation, to promote concrete economic cooperation projects between the two countries.

Mẫn thanked him for the invitation and asked the relevant agencies of the two countries to make arrangements.

Following the talks, the two parliamentary leaders toured and reviewed digital transformation tools used in legislative activities at the NA building, during which NA President Achi once again expressed his strong impression of the Vietnamese legislature’s digital transformation capabilities and achievements. — VNS

President of the National Assembly of Côte d’Ivoire Patrick Achi (centre), accompanied by Việt Nam's National Assembly President Trần Thanh Mẫn (third from left), at the main hall (Diên Hồng) during a tour of the National Assembly building following their official talks on August 23. — VNA/VNS Photo