Party General Secretary and President Tô Lâm meets with President of the National Assembly of Côte d’Ivoire Patrick Achi on Monday during his official visit to Việt Nam from August 23-26. VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Party General Secretary and President Tô Lâm has praised the strong growth of Việt Nam–Côte d’Ivoire relations in recent years, noting that Côte d’Ivoire became Việt Nam’s largest trading partner in Africa in 2025, and called for further cooperation for the mutual benefit of the two peoples and countries.

He made the remarks at the meeting with President of the National Assembly of Côte d’Ivoire Patrick Achi on Monday during his official visit to Việt Nam from August 23 to 26, stressing that closer bilateral ties would contribute to the development, peace and stability of both regions.

The top Vietnamese leader said that, alongside increasing high-level exchanges and sharing legislative experience, the National Assembly of Việt Nam and the National Assembly of Côte d’Ivoire could further serve as a bridge to advance bilateral ties, particularly by promoting and overseeing the negotiation, signing and implementation of cooperation agreements and commitments between the two countries.

A view of the meeting between Party General Secretary and President Tô Lâm and President of the National Assembly of Côte d’Ivoire Patrick Achi. VNA/VNS Photo

The two legislatures could also help bring the Vietnamese and Ivorian peoples closer together by strengthening cooperation in culture, social affairs, education and training, and people-to-people exchanges, he said.

Regarding economic cooperation, Lâm called on the two sides to expand and diversify their import and export products beyond traditional commodities such as raw cashew nuts and rice, while seeking solutions to balance bilateral trade.

He also suggested that the two legislatures study the early establishment of mechanisms for sharing information on new policies and regulations in the areas of economy, trade and investment.

The top leader asked Côte d’Ivoire to facilitate investment by Vietnamese businesses in the country, particularly in areas where Việt Nam has strengths, including agriculture, telecommunications, oil and gas, digital transformation, cybersecurity, mineral extraction and processing, agro-processing, civil infrastructure, seaports, urban development and electric vehicles.

Achi said that having witnessed first-hand Việt Nam’s impressive development achievements over the past 40 years of Đổi mới (Renewal), he once again emphasised that Việt Nam’s success was a source of inspiration and a model for African countries to pursue in their nation-building and development efforts.

Sharing the outcomes of his talks with Vietnamese National Assembly President Trần Thanh Mẫn, Achi said Việt Nam and Côte d’Ivoire share many similarities in their development aspirations and conditions. He expressed his hope that Côte d’Ivoire would become a destination for Vietnamese businesses seeking to invest and expand their markets across West Africa.

He also expressed his wish for the two legislatures to serve as a regular forum for dialogue, mutual learning and cooperation in such areas as agriculture, processing and manufacturing, digital transformation, private investment, workforce development and mobilisation of development finance.

On the occasion, Achi conveyed an invitation from President of Côte d’Ivoire and President of the Rally of Houphouëtists for Democracy and Peace Alassane Ouattara for Lâm to pay a visit to Côte d’Ivoire.

The top Vietnamese leader asked the foreign ministries of the two countries to discuss and agree on a suitable time for the visit. — VNS