PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc (right) met South Korea-based Lotte Group’s Chairman Shin Dong-bin yesterday. — VNA/VNS Photo Thong Nhat
The South Korean conglomerate Lotte Group’s chairman Shin Dong-bin hopes Lotte’s eco smart city projects will become the best places to live in Viet Nam.
Speaking at a meeting with the Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on Tuesday, Lotte Group chairman said his visit to Viet Nam this year was to examine the progress of Lotte’s eco smart city projects in HCM City and Ha Noi.
“The smart city projects will improve people’s living standards by providing them with access to spearhead technologies including Internet of Things (IoT), open platforms, cloud computing and environmental friendliness,” said Shin.
“The projects will help improve the cities’ socio-economic growth, especially the Thu Thiem Lotte smart city would favour employing residents of Thu Thiem Commune,” the Lotte Group chairman said, wishing the PM will join the project’s groundbreaking ceremony next year.
At the meeting, PM Phuc spoke highly of Lotte Group’s operations in Viet Nam and expected Lotte, with other South Korean firms in Viet Nam, would help foster the strategic partnership between the two nations.
A view of Lotte’s eco smart city project in HCM City’s Thu Thiem Commune. - Photo Lotte Group
Farm produce promotion
Lotte Group chairman Shin Dong-bin acknowledged PM Phuc’s concern over exporting Viet Nam’s agricultural and farming products to overseas markets.
“Viet Nam’s export products have been displayed at all stores and supermarkets in South Korea since 2011 and they will be officially allowed for sale next April under the co-operation between Ha Noi and Lotte Mart South Korea,” Shin said.
In return, PM Phuc asked Lotte Group to make further investment in production activities in Viet Nam and promote the sale and consumption of Vietnamese products, especially farm produce, in South Korea.
Start-up community
Lotte Group has tried its best to foster the start-up community and open up new opportunities for Vietnamese talents, the Lotte Group chairman said.
“Since 2008, the Lotte Scholarship Foundation has given scholarships to more than 1,800 Vietnamese students. With Silicon Valley Vietnam and the Ministry of Science and Technology, it is implementing the Lotte Accelerator project to support outstanding start-up projects,” Shin said.
The front view of the shopping-department-residence complex Lotte Centre in Ha Noi. -— Photo Lotte Group
There are now 3,000 start-up projects in Viet Nam and 100 of them have received huge investment from overseas investors, according to PM Phuc. He also asked Lotte Group to quickly establish a start-up foundation for young Vietnamese people.
According to the Lotte Group chairman, the bilateral relationship between Viet Nam and South Korea is now at its best. The South Korean government has granted long-term visas for Vietnamese travellers – the first in Asia – promising further co-operation between the two countries.
Since its launch in Viet Nam in 1996, Lotte Group has set up 18 sub-units in the country, employing a total 20,000 workers and investing more than VND40 trillion (US$1.78 billion). Lotte Group has also focused on business-to-business (B2B) projects. For example, Lotte Chemical – a sub-unit of Lotte Group’s Lotte Advanced Materials – started constructing a factory at Nhon Trach Industrial Zone in the southern province of Dong Nai to meet the demand of the electronics industry. — VNS