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| Mr. Nguyen Van Phuong, Chairman of the People's Committee of Hue City, was speaking at the opening session |
Speaking at the opening of the Congress, Mr. Nguyen Van Phuong, Deputy Secretary of the City's Party Committee, Chairman of the City’s People's Committee, emphasized: Over 15 years of organization, Hue City has always considered the Congress an important forum for local and regional governments to discuss common issues of community concern, exchange policy measures, and enhance mutual understanding through open discussions and find solutions to solve problems of mutual concern. He also affirmed that this is a highly significant event, an opportunity for leaders, experts, and representatives from local and regional governments in the East Asia region to meet, exchange, and discuss important issues concerning the entire region.
“We hope that the 14th Congress in 2025, hosted in Hue City, will fulfill its mission of continuing the successes of previous congresses, while opening up new opportunities for cooperation and sustainable development of the dynamic East Asia region in the era of integration,” emphasized Mr. Nguyen Van Phuong.
Ms. Le Thi Hong Van, Director of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Cultural Diplomacy, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, emphasized: Sustainable, inclusive development and green growth in the digital age have become more urgent than ever for all nations and communities, especially as the world is undergoing unprecedented profound and comprehensive transformations in geopolitics, geoeconomics, strategic competition, the strong shift of economic centers, the explosion of science and technology, along with pressing challenges of climate change, urbanization, energy security, and traditional and non-traditional security. Green, sustainable tourism development and smart urban development are crucial pillars to realize the goal of green, sustainable, and inclusive development. These two areas are closely linked and offer many opportunities for substantive cooperation between localities and international partners.
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| Delegates attended the Congress |
“This requires the joint efforts of the local communities, as UN Secretary-General António Guterres stated: ‘Cities are engines of economic growth and innovation that hold the key to achieving the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals,’” affirmed Ms. Le Thi Hong Van.
This Congress focuses on two main themes, including: “Green and Sustainable Tourism Development” – sharing and exchanging experiences and solutions among agencies, businesses, and experts on green tourism, especially sustainable tourism models, focusing on balancing economic development and environmental protection; and the thematic subject “Smart Urban Development” aims to share experiences, difficulties, and introduce appropriate management and technological solutions in smart urban areas such as smart transportation, urban order management via cameras, and planning with complete data digitization models and solutions.
With a strong determination towards a future of cooperation, prosperity, and sustainable development for the East Asia region, immediately after the opening ceremony, delegates focused on discussing difficulties and challenges; sharing experiences and development solutions on the two main themes: “Green and Sustainable Tourism Development”, and “Smart Urban Development”.
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| Delegates from various countries attended the Congress |
The thematic session on “Green and Sustainable Tourism Development” has two main topics: Wellness Tourism – unlocking potential, creating trends; and Plastic Reduction in Tourism – contributing to the Net Zero goal. This session will focus on exchanging experiences and solutions among agencies, businesses, and experts on green tourism, especially wellness tourism and plastic reduction; developing sustainable tourism models, focusing on balancing economic development and environmental protection; and proposing policies to promote initiatives that minimize the environmental impact of the tourism industry, aiming for the Net Zero goal.
The thematic session on “Smart Urban Development” with the topic: Smart governance based on digital data, focuses on sharing experiences, difficulties, and introducing appropriate management and technological solutions in smart urban areas such as smart transportation, smart healthcare, smart education, urban order management via cameras, and planning with complete data digitization models and solutions, etc.