Riyadh (VNA) - Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh met withSaudi Arabia's Minister of Economy and Planning Faisal Al-Ibrahim and Minister ofHuman Resources and Social Development Ahmed Al-Rajhi in Riyadh on October 19 (local time),as part of his trip to attend the Association of Southeast Asian Nations - GulfCooperation Council (ASEAN - GCC) Summit and visit to Saudi Arabia.

Talking to Minister of Economy and Planning Al-Ibrahim, Chinh affirmed that the Vietnam-SaudiArabia cooperation is developing well and holds great potential for furtherexpansion. He proposed the two countries strengthen their economic connectivity, cooperatein organising trade-investment promotion activities, particularly in energy andfinance-banking, and boost teamwork in such new areas as the production andprocessing of Halal products and digital transformation.

The Vietnamese Government leader suggested both sidesfacilitate market access for each other's strong products and work closely to address issues related to the export of Vietnam'saquatic products to Saudi Arabia. He also called for increased bilateral exchanges,cultural interactions, knowledge sharing, and transportation and aviation connectivity.

In response, the minister pledged to collaborate with the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Industry and MineralResources, the Saudi Arabian co-chair of the Saudi Arabia-Vietnam Joint Government Committee, in order to deepen economic cooperation with Vietnam.

The two countries should take advantage of eachother's markets to reach other regional markets,he said.

Al-Ibrahim also expressed his wish to visit Vietnam in thenear future to complete the negotiation and signing of cooperation agreementswith Vietnamese partners.

To achieve the aforementioned goals, the two sides agreed tostudy the establishment of joint working groups for economic affairs and tohold the 5th meeting of the Joint Government Committee soon.

At the meeting with the Saudi Arabian Minister of Human Resourcesand Social Development, PM Chinh lauded positive developments in the nations’ties and highlighted labour as a crucial area of their bilateral cooperation,especially considering Saudi Arabia's implementation of extensive urban andinfrastructure projects under its Vision 2030.

To step up collaboration in this field, Chinh recommended the sidesincrease exchanges between their labour management agencies, promotecollaboration in training, and connect their labour markets. Also important isthe enhancement of legal frameworks for labour cooperation serving mutualsupport in the supply of high-quality workforce for national development, henoted.

For his part, Al-Rajhi said Saudi Arabia holds ambitiousgoals in this area, including a plan to admit 10 million more foreign workers,particularly in the sectors of industrial production, energy, healthcare, andtourism.

The minister spoke highly of the quality of Vietnam's labour force, especiallyskilled workers, and underscored the enormous potential for bilateralcollaboration in this field. He hoped both sides will join hands to promptlyresolve current challenges in labour cooperation, particularly concerning thelegal framework, training cooperation, and the establishment of effectiverecruitment mechanisms, so as to bring more Vietnamese workers to Saudi Arabia in thenear future./.