Prime Minister visits AUT, talks to Vietnamese expats in New Zealand

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (front, second, right) visits the Auckland University of Technology on March 12 (Photo: VNA)

The activity was part of PM Phuc’s official visit to New Zealand from March 11 to 14.

The Vietnamese Government leader was welcomed at the AUT with the traditional Hongi greeting of local Maori people. 

After touring the AUT facilities, the PM talked to Vietnamese students in the university and representatives of the Vietnamese community.

At the meeting, Vietnamese Ambassador Nguyen Viet Dung said most of Vietnamese people in the country have led a stable life and contributed to local development. Many Vietnamese are also among the students with the best academic results at the AUT.

PM Phuc highly valued the Vietnamese Embassy’s efforts to promote the two countries’ cooperation and support Vietnamese people in New Zealand. He expressed his hope that the embassy’s staff and Vietnamese people in the country will make unceasing efforts in their work so as to improve themselves, support their families, and contribute to the homeland.

He noted that there are nearly 6,000 Vietnamese students in New Zealand at present. The two countries have cooperated in many fields, especially hi-tech agriculture, but those activities are just in the initial stage and there remains huge potential for more cooperation.

Aside from external relations, promoting trade partnership is also an important task that the embassy and Vietnamese people in New Zealand should pay attention to, he said, asking for the reinforcement of bilateral ties in the spheres that New Zealand is strong at such as green agriculture and infrastructure building.

PM Phuc asked the embassy to bolster connections in education and training, expand tourism cooperation and further assist the Vietnamese community.

The AUT has engaged in a number of joint training activities with Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang city of Vietnam. It plans to step up educational cooperation with the Southeast Asian nation with a hope that Vietnamese students in the AUT will be an important bridge helping to nurture the friendship and cooperation between the two countries./.

VNA