A delegation of Ichinoseki city, located in Japan’s Iwate prefecture, led by Mayor Yoshihito Sato paid a working visit to Hoa Binh city of Hoa Binh province on January 18 to discuss bilateral cooperation. They were welcomed by Nguyen Van Thang, member of the provincial Party Committee’s Standing Board and Secretary of the Party Committee of Hoa Binh city, along with officials of some local departments and sectors.
Leaders of the administrations of Ichinoseki and Hoa Binh cities sign a memorandum of understanding on cooperation.
Addressing the meeting, Secretary of the Hoa Binh municipal Party Committee Nguyen Van Thang said with many similarities between the two sides, he hopes his city will have long-term cooperation with Ichinoseki in order to attract more investment to local industrial parks and clusters, and develop urban areas, tourism, culture, sports, health care, waste treatment, agriculture, and rural areas.
Mayor Yoshihito highly valued the socio-economic development of Hoa Binh city. He said many Japanese enterprises have come to invest here, and thanks to support from the city’s authorities, they have operated effectively, thus substantially contributing to Hoa Binh province’s budget and creating jobs for many local residents.
At the event, the two sides introduced their respective cities’ potential, strength, environmental landscapes, and cultural traditions. They discussed and agreed on the cooperation in training and labour export. They also proposed exchanges and programmes be held to share experience in the management of educational institutions, enhance cultural links, develop tourism, attract investment, and train health workers.
After that, the administrations of Ichinoseki and Hoa Binh cities signed a memorandum on cooperation under which they will promote investment attraction to local industrial parks and clusters. They will share management experience in the fields of urban development, tourism, culture, sports, health, science - technology, clean industries, waste treatment, and environmental protection. The two cities will also reinforce ties in human resources development in line with relevant legal regulations of Vietnam and Japan. In addition, they will step up the sending and reception of Vietnamese technicians, engineers, trainees, skilled workers, and vocational students in the areas matching both sides’ interest.
Besides, the cities will consider pushing ahead with the collaboration in agriculture and rural development, especially sharing agricultural production and processing techniques, and foster friendship, people-to-people ties, and cultural exchanges.
Once a mountainous province facing many challenges, Hoa Binh has, after more than a decade of implementing the national target programme on new-style rural area development, emerged as a bright spot in Vietnam’s northern midland and mountainous region. In the first quarter of 2025, the province recorded positive results, paving the way for Hoa Binh to enter a phase of accelerated growth with a proactive and confident mindset.
Hoa Binh province is steadily advancing its agricultural sector through the adoption of high-tech solutions, seen as a sustainable path for long-term development.
The steering committee for key projects of Hoa Binh province convened on May 14 to assess the progress of major ongoing developments
A delegation of Hoa Binh province has attended the "Meet Korea 2025" event, recently held by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Embassy of the Republic of Korea (RoK) in Vietnam, the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency, and the People's Committee of Hung Yen province.
Hoa Binh province joined Vietnam’s national "One Commune, One Product” (OCOP) programme in 2019, not simply as a mountainous region following central policy, but with a clear vision to revive the cultural and agricultural values in its villages and crops.
From just 16 certified products in its inaugural year to 158 by early 2025, the One Commune One Product (OCOP) programme in Hoa Binh province has followed a steady and strategic path. But beyond the numbers, it has reawakened local heritage, turning oranges, bamboo shoots, brocade, and herbal remedies into branded, market-ready goods - and, more profoundly, transformed how local communities value and present their own cultural identity.
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