Chairman of the Đà Nẵng People’s Committee Nguyễn Mạnh Hùng (right) presents a commemorative gift to Bodo Ramelow, Vice President of the German Bundestag. — VNA/VNS Photo Quốc Dũng

ĐÀ NẴNG — Bodo Ramelow, Vice President of the German Bundestag, led a delegation to the central coastal city of Đà Nẵng on Friday to work with local authorities on expanding bilateral cooperation.

During the meeting, the two sides reviewed socio-economic cooperation between Đà Nẵng and German localities, and discussed directions for strengthening ties in the coming period.

Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Nguyễn Mạnh Hùng expressed his hope that Ramelow will continue supporting cooperation activities between Đà Nẵng and German partners, particularly the state of Thuringia and the city of Chemnitz.

He said Đà Nẵng is seeking to deepen collaboration in exchanging human resources, building on the memorandum of understanding signed with Thuringia and existing networking activities launched in 2023 between the German state and the two local facilities, namely the Đà Nẵng College of Food Industry and Đà Nẵng University of Medical Technology and Pharmacy.

The city welcomes the establishment and expansion of high-quality German language training centres to help students and workers enhance their qualifications and meet employment requirements in Germany, Hùng shared.

In addition, Đà Nẵng hopes to sign further agreements on labour cooperation and vocational education with German localities and agencies to expand overseas vocational study programmes and facilitate the transfer of advanced training technologies.

The municipal leader also called on Ramelow to encourage German businesses to invest in sectors aligned with Germany’s strengths and Đà Nẵng’s development priorities, including high technology, semiconductor manufacturing, renewable energy, the green economy and digital transformation.

Praising the city’s strong economic growth in recent years, Ramelow suggested that Frankfurt could serve as an appropriate German partner in Việt Nam’s plan to develop its international financial centre in Đà Nẵng, and pledged to support future connections.

He added the German Chamber of Industry and Commerce in Việt Nam stands ready to facilitate cooperation and support business engagement between the two sides.

On education and training, the Bundestag Vice President highlighted vocational education as an area with significant potential for joint work. He suggested developing joint training programmes enabling graduates to obtain qualifications recognised in both Việt Nam and Germany, creating broader employment opportunities for young people.

During the visit, Ramelow and his delegation also toured the Don Bosco vocational school in Hoà Xuân Ward and visited several German businesses operating in Đà Nẵng.

Germany is currently one of Đà Nẵng’s leading partners in Europe, with cooperation spanning industry, research, science–technology, education and cultural exchange.

Đà Nẵng has established formal partnerships with Thuringia (2024) and Chemnitz (2026). The municipal administration has also signed a memorandum of understanding with Frankfurt Main Finance to exchange expertise on developing digital finance and financial technology.

Last year, Đà Nẵng’s exports to Germany were estimated at US$77.3 million while imports reached $138.6 million. The city currently hosts 24 German-invested projects with total registered investment of around $233.3 million. — VNA/VNS