Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs visits Vietnamese community in Senegal

(VNF) – Head of the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Vu Hong Nam met the Vietnamese community in Senegal on April 15. The meeting was part of Nam’s visit as special envoy designated by the Vietnam’s President to the African country.

Located in the Westernmost part of the Africa continent, it takes people in Vietnam nearly 24 hours to reach Senagal via air carrier.

Dating back to the 1950-1960, an estimated number of 3,000 Vietnamese - French people had headed to Senegal.

Nearly 200 Vietnamese households living in the country were established by mixed marriages between Vietnamese women and Senegalese men. Most of them have been residing in the country for many years. Only a few of them arrived in Senegal as travelers and chose to settle down afterwards.

The majority of Vietnamese in the African nation work as goverment officers, business owners, or are employed in other sectors of the economy. Most of their occupations are stable, the Vietnamese Homeland News stated.

Most people of Vietnamese descend in Senegal are having stable jobs. (photo: Minh Chau)

Remarkably, some of them even once managed to secure high position in the goverment office, namely Jean Gomis (former high-ranked official in Senegalese army), Claudia Dialo (former Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ambassador of Senegal to other countries).

With a view to strengthen the bond among Vietnamese in Senegal, in November 2016, the Indochina Vietnamese Association in Senegal was set up as a big family for 200 Senegalese of Vietnamese descend.

At the meeting with the Vietnamese community in Senegal, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Vu Hong Nam conveyed greetings to high-level leaders, the people, and all the Vietnamese people in Senegal.

He expressed his pride and appreciation for the outstanding efforts Vietnamese people in Senegal have made in overcoming various obstacles. Despite various challenges, they even managed to attain numerous successes in the host country, while still preserving patriotism, solidarity, mutually supports for one another and especially the identity of Vietnamese culture, the diplomat noted.

Congratulating the Vietnamese community on the charter of the Association, Nam stressed that the association should do it best as a reliable platform gathering compatriots to jointly deal with common issues of the community.

Each of the member should be an ambassador who help broadcast the image of Vietnam, its potentials, people and culture to Senegalese friends and fostering the cooperation and friendship between two countries, Nam underscored.

During the meeting, participants also received answers on issues regarding nationality, visa exemption, and relevant identity documents for the second, third generation of Vietnamese in the African country.

Nam presenting Vietnamese text book to Vietnamese Senegalist (photo: Minh Chau)

Vice Minister Vu Hong Nam took the chance to request the Vietnam Embassy in Angeria, Senegal and the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs accelerate the research and propose solution to assist people who wish to obtain the Vietnamese citizenship.