The Singaporean Consulate General in Ho Chi Minh City hosted a ceremony in the evening of July 31 to celebrate the country’s 50 th National Day (August 9).

Addressing the event, Consul General Leow Siu Lin recalled the 50-year tradition of Singapore’s Independence Day and reviewed the friendship and cooperative relations between Singapore and Vietnam, and HCM City in particular, in recent years.

According to the diplomat, the Vietnam-Singapore fruitful cooperation is clearly seen in economic ties where Vietnam has fundamentals for strong growth.

She noted numerous Singaporean firms have poured long-term investments in Vietnam and are currently continuing to seek production and business expansion opportunities.

The national flags of Vietnam (left) and Singapore. Photo: aseanbriefing.com

People-to-people exchanges have been bolstered as about 3,000 Singaporean citizens are living and working in HCM City and neighbouring localities, while many Vietnamese are also living in Singapore, she added.

In return, HCM City People's Committee Chairman Le Hoang Quan said Singapore’s impressive development has demonstrated the fact that as an island nation without abundant natural resources, it is still able to build a green, clean, beautiful and prosperous country with unique architectures, a harmonious society and a powerful economy.

According to Quan, Singapore is now one of the five biggest foreign investors in HCM City.

The presence of more than 500 Singaporean enterprises in the city has showed their confidence in its great potentials and bright development future, Quan said.

This is a great encouragement for the municipal authorities to improve the investment climate, thus attracting more foreign investors, including those from Singapore.

By the end of 2014, Singapore had 719 investment projects in the southern hub, with a combined investment capital of 8.2 billion USD. Bilateral trade between the city and Singapore reached 4.4 billion USD last year./.

VNF/VNA