On the occasion of the 53rd Anniversary of the Independence Day and the 23rd Anniversary of the Liberation of the State of Kuwait, the Consulate General of the State of Kuwait in Ho Chi Minh City organized a reception on 25 February 2014 at 06.30 pm at the Ballroom of Park Hyatt Saigon Hotel.

Mr. Le Thanh Liem, Vice Chairman of the People’s Committee of Ho Chi Minh City attended and delivered a speech at the reception. Other distinguished guests include leaders and representatives of cities and provinces in the south, diplomats from the Consular Corps, entrepreneurs, Kuwaiti expatriates, etc.

In his speech, H.E. Mr. Omar Al-Qenaei, Consul General said: “Kuwait and Vietnam have enjoyed a special relationship stretching back to 1976 when the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development started to provide funds for a number of infrastructure projects in Vietnam. Preliminary figures from the Vietnam Customs show that trade exchange value between the two countries reached around 740 million USD in 2013. He really expected that the figure will exceed 1 billion USD in the years to come, especially when the Nghi Son Oil Refinery and Petrochemical Complex, a shining example of Kuwait’s investment in Vietnam, starts operation in 2017.”

The Consul General also called for Vietnamese enterprises to take more active role in conducting market surveys and aggressively introduce their products to Kuwait’s market at exhibitions or trade fairs.

The Consul General informed that the Consulate has taken a very active and dynamic role in recent activities such as contributing to the organization of the annual charity bazaars of the Consular Club, handing grants of the Government of Kuwait to some provinces in the Mekong Delta, and providing funds for Office of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Ho Chi Minh City to build houses for victims of human trafficking in Tay Ninh Province.

In his remarks, Mr. Le Thanh Liem, Vice Chairman of the People’s Committee of Ho Chi Minh City showed his appreciation to the Consul General for his support to Vietnamese businesses. He said “I highly appreciate Mr. Consul General’s initiative of encouraging Vietnamese businesses to visit and see Kuwait with their own eyes what opportunities are available there. We in Ho Chi Minh City would like to reassure you that we are more than happy to welcome businesses from Kuwait to our city.”

The Vice Chairman also said “Given the potential and constant progress in development of both sides, I believe the multi-faceted cooperation between Ho Chi Minh City and Kuwait will keep reaching new heights.”

Below are some photos at the reception: