VUFO President Phan Anh Son (R) and Humile Mashatile, spouse of Deputy President of South Africa Paul Mashatile, at the meeting in Hanoi on December 14 (Photo: Communist Party of Vietnam online newspaper) The Deputy President's wife is accompanying her husband on anofficial visit to Vietnam from December 12 to 15.
At the meeting, the host and guest discussed cooperation potential and agreed to coordinate activities helping strengthenfriendship between the two peoples.
Sonemphasised that Vietnam and South Africa officially established diplomaticrelations in 1993, but their relations date back long before that.
Over the past years, bilateral relations have been growing inmultiple areas such as economy, trade, and technology. Cooperation potentialremains huge in terms of tourism, cultural and art exchanges, education, and mineralmining, among others, he added.
VUFOhas worked with the Vietnam - Africa Friendship and Cooperation Association (VAFCA)and the South African Embassy in Vietnam to hold numerous activities, includingcelebrations of the countries’ anniversaries, friendship meetings, conferences,workshops, and trips by South African delegations to Vietnamese localities, henoted.
Theofficial proposed his guest create conditions and support South Africanagencies and organisations to pay more attention to enhancing friendship withVietnam, set up a friendship organisation between the two countries, andintroduce partners to VUFO and VAFCA.
Forher part, Humile Mashatile said the South African delegation’s visit to Vietnamaims to build on the outcomes of the trip to her country by Vietnamese VicePresident Vo Thi Anh Xuan last September.
DuringXuan’s visit, the two sides discussed cooperation in many areas like politics,security, economy, education, and culture, she continued, noting that Vietnamand South Africa share many historical similarities.
She held that the two countries should push ahead with cooperation in the fields generating practical benefits for people such as education, cultural exchanges, and poverty reduction./.
VNA
