Ireland and Vietnam ink development deal

from the AFP

DUBLIN (AFP) — Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern and his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Tan Dung signed a development cooperation accord in Dublin on Monday, a joint statement said.

Dung is on a three-day official visit to Ireland accompanied by a high level delegation, including senior government ministers and prominent business figures.

A joint statement heralded the first official visit by a Vietnamese head of government to Ireland and the first face-to-face discussions between the two as an "effective strengthening and deepening of Vietnam-Ireland relations."

Their talks also dealt with UN reform and human rights. Vietnam is a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.

Ahern briefed Dung on a conference on cluster munitions which Dublin will host in May. He also paid tribute to Vietnam's success in reducing the poverty rate from 60 percent in 1993 to 15 percent last year.

Ireland has pledged over 87 million euros (133 million dollars) in overseas development aid to Vietnam in the period 2007-2010.

It has designated Vietnam as one of its priority countries for aid, with the focus on poverty reduction and improvement of health services.

The two premiers agreed to increase exchanges at ministerial level "to share the lessons learned in the development of Ireland's 'Celtic Tiger' economy, in particular Ireland's experience in attracting foreign investment and developing its education system."

Ahern also accepted an invitation to visit Vietnam at a date to be confirmed.