Vietnamese Ambassador to China Pham Thanh Binh (2nd from left) at a seminar in Beijing on August 24, 2026 Photo: Courtesy of the Embassy of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam in China

The Embassy of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam in China and Vietnam's northern Bac Ninh province jointly hosted a seminar titled "Bac Ninh Province: Joining Hands for a Shared Future" in Beijing on August 24 to promote investment and cooperation between Vietnam and China.

In his address, Vietnamese Ambassador to China Pham Thanh Binh said that the event facilitates Chinese companies to gain a deeper understanding of Bac Ninh province's development potential and cooperation prospects.

"This session serves as a vital platform for Chinese enterprises and investors to gain in-depth insight into Bac Ninh province's investment promotion policies, and cooperation opportunities; it strengthened relations between local governments of the two countries while facilitating connections between Vietnamese enterprises and potential Chinese partners," said Ambassador Pham Thanh Binh.

Vietnam is vigorously refining its institutional frameworks, improving the investment and business environment. The country is accelerating infrastructure development, driving technological innovation and digital and green transformations, and enhancing the quality of its human resources, the Ambassador said. 

The Southeast Asian country aims to attract investment projects that utilize advanced technologies, offer high added value, and enable deep integration into international value and supply chains, the diplomat said. 

"At the same time, we place great importance on strengthening information exchange and promptly addressing the difficulties and challenges faced by enterprises and investors," said Pham Thanh Binh. 

Chinese enterprises possess strong capabilities in areas such as technology, manufacturing, logistics, infrastructure, computing power, new energy, the digital economy, and emerging industries. These companies could explore vast potential for expanded cooperation and investment in Vietnam, the ambassador said. 

China and Vietnam enjoy significant complementary advantages regarding markets, resources, technology, and production capacity, as well as respective positions within regional and international value and supply chains, said Pham Thanh Binh. 

A region with a long history and a rich cultural heritage, Bac Ninh the cradle of the Kinh Bac culture, an ancient Vietnamese civilization. It is also a dynamic economic hub that has experienced robust growth in recent years, Pham said, citing the convenient transportation links to key Vietnamese ports and airports, a comprehensive infrastructure system and flexible policies. 

The resolutions on the establishment of Bac Ninh and Quang Ninh as centrally-governed cities were approved by Vietnamese lawmakers on Monday, according to Vietnamese media reports. 

Pham Van Thinh, vice chairman of the Bac Ninh Provincial People's Committee, said the province aims to become a centrally governed city and a leading semiconductor and AI hub in Vietnam. Its GRDP grew 10.27 percent in 2025 and 10.56 percent in the first half of 2026.

Liu Chun, president of the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products (CCCME), said at the session that the CCCME and the government of Bac Ninh province have laid solid foundation of cooperation through on-site business visits, business pairing over the past two years. 

As a hub of Vietnam's electronics industry, Bac Ninh province is advancing industrial upgrading and quality improvement, Liu said in her remarks. 

Located close to Hanoi and home to a concentration of industrial parks, Bac Ninh province is a key hub for the electronics and information industry in northern Vietnam and one of the most important provinces for Chinese mechanical and electrical enterprises to invest and establish operations in the country, Liu said. 

The CCCME is committed to supporting the high-quality development of Vietnamese provinces by consolidating regular government-business liaison mechanisms, Liu said.

The chamber is also expanding collaboration into emerging sectors such as intelligent manufacturing and green transformation. It will strengthen compliance guidance to foster sustainable local operations, and deepen long-term, pragmatic cooperation with the Vietnamese Embassy in China and players in the sector, Liu said. 

In his closing remarks, Nguyen Hong Thai, a senior official of the Bac Ninh province, described the province's transition to a centrally governed city as a strategic milestone. He said Bac Ninh regards Chinese enterprises as important partners and welcomes high-tech, environmentally friendly projects, pledging support throughout the project life cycle.

Bac Ninh targets world's top 50 smart cities by 2030, utilizing data and digital transformation as the foundation for sustainable urban development, according to VietnamPlus, an official state-run, multi-language electronic news website and digital media outlet in Vietnam.

By 2030, Bac Ninh plans to establish a data-driven smart governance model, operate an integrated smart city operations center, and incorporate City Information Modelling into urban planning, the report said in March. 

During a business matchmaking conference, the government of East China's Shandong Province and the People's Committee of Bac Ninh inked an agreement to establish a friendly cooperative relationship in Jinan, Shandong Province, on Wednesday, local news reported.