Secretary of  HCM City’s Party Committee Nguyễn Thiện Nhân meets with visiting French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe on Sunday.— VNA/VNS Photo Xuân Khu

HCM CITY — Secretary of  HCM City’s Party Committee Nguyễn Thiện Nhân held a meeting with visiting French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe on Sunday.

The municipal leader spoke highly of the French Government’s priorities in development co-operation with the city, saying that HCM City boasted a long history of cultural exchange with France, with works bearing French architecture such as the Opera House and Notre Dame Cathedral.

He underlined that HCM City had carried out projects with the French University Centre under the Việt Nam National University-HCM City, the Vietnamese-French Training Programme of Excellent Engineers under the HCM City University of Technology, Marguerite Duras International School, and the Việt Nam-France medical centre, among others.

In addition, HCM City and Lyon had inked a co-operation agreement for 2018-20 focusing on urban development, lighting and human resources in urban management for HCM City, he added.

Nhân said that the city welcomed French investment in smart city construction, innovative startups, high technology, human resources training for the fourth Industry Revolution, climate change and waste treatment.

HCM City wanted to bolster co-operation with French experts to carry out plans to preserve local cultural and historic sites, he stressed. 

PM Edouard Philippe highly valued the effective co-operation between HCM City and France in various realms such as economy, healthcare, culture and education. 

The guest noted his hope that the city’s leaders would continue to support the French housing project and another project on expanding the Marguerite Duras International School.

The French Government wanted to expand and develop co-operation between HCM City and French localities, he said. While in HCM City, the French PM attended ceremonies to inaugurate the French medical centre and open the France-Việt Nam technological business forum.

French PM attends business forum

The same day in HCM City, while delivering a speech at French Tech Forum, a bridge for tech entrepreneurs and start-ups between Việt Nam and France, the French Prime Minister highlighted the significance of the Government support with small start-ups while building eco-system.

However he stressed that start-ups should not rely completely on the Government support but need to overcome challenges through innovation and patience.

“Adaptation to the world’s changes should be regarded as opportunities for brave innovators,” he said.

The PM said in the future, not only big French enterprises and corporations but also small French businesses will contribute positively to Việt Nam’s economic growth because small enterprises have advantages of creativity and innovation.

The PM expressed his belief in the success of Vietnamese French Tech community with the help of the Vietnamese who have been trained in France and are working there.

The PM was introduced Sài Gòn Innovation Hub - SIHUB - a Vietnamese innovative start-up eco-system consisting of about 3,000 start-ups. Over the past five years, the hub has connected start-up eco-systems of Asia Pacific with major systems in the world.

French Tech Community in Việt Nam has nearly 3,000 members and was recognised as France’s new technology hub in Việt Nam in 2016. It is also  France’s first new technology hub in South East Asia. – VNS