Priorities in Official Development Assistance (ODA) Policy

All value Vietnam's role in maintaining regional peace and security.

The establishment of the Japanese Ministry of Defense in January 2007 has enhanced the position of the military and defense forces in the Japanese government, especially in terms of influencing the budget and strategic decisions. This is also the basis for the Japanese military to play a larger role in the face of external challenges and threats. In Japan's annual White Paper on national defense and security, the policy of security dialogue and defense exchange with Vietnam is one of the three main contents of Japan's policy of enhancing the international security environment, which are:

- Efforts to provide peacekeeping cooperation activities

- Promote security dialogue and defense exchanges

- Efforts to control the military, disarm and limit weapons of mass destruction 25

Maybe you are interested!

With this policy, Japan actively exchanges high-ranking military officers to build a relationship of mutual understanding and trust, exchanges in the field of defense and security related to the two countries in particular and Japan and the Southeast Asian region in general, and exchanges defense and security experts, with the hope that this defense exchange will be the foundation for building multilateral defense relations, playing an important role in maintaining peace and stability in the region.

2.3.2. Economic field

2.3.2.1. Improving Vietnam's investment environment

Improving the investment environment will benefit all parties involved in Vietnam's economic development as well as Vietnam itself.

25 www.mod.go.jp

Vietnam as the first beneficiary. Therefore, the Japanese government has actively supported Vietnam to improve the investment environment with the following contents:

- Review legal regulations related to investment

- Improve the capacity of enforcement agencies (customs, tax, courts, intellectual property management agencies, statistical agencies...)

- Perfecting investment-related institutions (legal system, judiciary, legal experts, industrial standards and measurement system)

- Building economic infrastructure (transportation and urban functions, enhancing the efficiency of transport and circulation, electricity, improving infrastructure, international telecommunications, wastewater and industrial waste treatment, actively using JBIC's international financial resources)

In that spirit, the Japanese government actively supports Vietnam through the proposal to implement a Joint Initiative of the two countries. In April 2003, Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Van Khai met in Tokyo and decided to implement the Vietnam - Japan Joint Initiative. The Action Plan of this Initiative focuses on two main points: Strengthening competitiveness - a necessary factor for Vietnam to win in competition with other Asian countries and attracting foreign investment - an indispensable factor in strengthening competitiveness, with 44 contents in the Action Plan that have been implemented in recent years such as: Eliminating regulations on investment restrictions, building competition laws, fighting corruption, expanding foreign investment promotion activities, ... and has completed phase I in 2005, phase II in 2007 and is continuing to implement phase III. The implementation of the Vietnam - Japan Joint Initiative will create an environment for implementing the Agreement.

Vietnam - Japan Investment Agreement to promote, encourage and protect Vietnamese investment.

The Japanese Government hopes that with the signing of the Vietnam-Japan Investment Agreement and the implementation of the Vietnam-Japan Joint Initiative, Vietnam's investment environment will be improved, more open and transparent, creating favorable conditions not only for Japanese investors but also for other domestic and foreign investors.

2.3.2.2. Focus on comprehensive economic development

One of Japan's policies is to comprehensively develop Vietnam's economy, thereby comprehensively developing the cooperative relationship between the two countries. Through the signing of the Vietnam - Japan Investment Agreement, which took effect in 2004, promoting the signing of the Vietnam - Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) at the end of 2008.

In fact, the Vietnam - Japan Investment Agreement was negotiated since March 1999, during the visit to Tokyo of former Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Van Khai, he had a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister K.Obuchi. The two sides agreed to start negotiations on the signing of the Agreement between Japan and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam on the Freedom, Promotion and Protection of Investment, abbreviated as the Japan - Vietnam Investment Agreement. Through two preparatory negotiations in 1999, four official negotiations and diplomatic contacts since 2002, at the meeting between the two prime ministers during Prime Minister Phan Van Khai's visit to Japan in April 2003, the two sides basically agreed on the main part of the Agreement. Then, on November 14, 2003 in Tokyo, the Japan-Vietnam Investment Agreement was signed by Japanese Foreign Minister Yuriko Yamaguchi and Vietnamese Minister of Planning and Investment Vo Hong Phuc. On November 19, 2004, at the Vietnamese Ministry of Planning and Investment in Hanoi, the then Japanese Ambassador to Vietnam Norio Hattori and Minister

Vietnam's Ministry of Planning and Investment Vo Hong Phuc signed an exchange of notes to officially bring the Japan - Vietnam Investment Agreement into effect.

The content of the Agreement not only covers the fields of production, agriculture, forestry, fishery and mining, but also the fields of financial services, banking, insurance, transportation, construction, education, health care, etc. The signed Agreement, in addition to being a legal basis to help Vietnam improve and stabilize its investment environment, also has an impact on further strengthening economic relations between the two countries. From the perspective of investment liberalization and protection of investors' rights, this Agreement is considered to be at a higher level than the investment agreements Japan has signed before. The Agreement comprehensively stipulates such contents as national treatment and most-favored-nation treatment, and in principle prohibits regulations that hinder investment.

The comprehensive economic development policy for Vietnam is included in Japan's White Paper on international trade and economy in the region. Therefore, the Vietnam-Japan Investment Agreement serves as the first step of comprehensive economic cooperation between Japan and ASEAN and promotes the implementation of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership for East Asia (CEPEA), and further develops the Vietnam-Japan cooperative relationship.

The AJCEP negotiation process was carried out under the direction of the heads of state in the Framework Agreement on ASEAN-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership signed in Bali (Indonesia) on October 8, 2003. This Agreement was initiated in January 2002 when former Japanese Prime Minister J. Koizumi proposed comprehensive economic integration between Japan and ASEAN in his speech during his visit to Singapore. The signing of the AJCEP Agreement is an important milestone in elevating the comprehensive cooperation relationship between Japan and ASEAN, and at the same time demonstrating the goodwill of the Japanese and Vietnamese governments to build a strategic partnership for peace and prosperity in the region.

East Asia. The AJCEP Agreement will contribute to maximizing the potential and advantages of each side, improving the effectiveness of economic cooperation, and meeting the general trend of economic integration in the region and the world. According to the plan, the AJCEP Agreement will take place in the capitals of 10 ASEAN countries and Japan in the form of rotating signing and was completed in April 2008.

The general principles that both sides agreed on during the negotiation process were that the agreement needed to bring about a balance of benefits for both sides, taking into account the sensitive areas of both sides, while acknowledging the difference in development levels between the two countries in order to have special treatment, including Vietnam.

The successful signing of the Vietnam-Japan Investment Agreement and the ASEAN-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement is the basis for the signing of the Vietnam-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA). This is considered an event marking an important step forward in the Japanese government's comprehensive economic development policy for Vietnam in particular and the region in general.

2.3.3. Priorities in Official Development Assistance (ODA) policy

Official development assistance (ODA) includes non-refundable aid that often focuses on areas such as population, education, health, environment, etc. Refundable aid, also known as preferential credit, often focuses on areas such as transportation, energy, irrigation, etc. and technical cooperation.

Regarding ODA provision policy, the Japanese government always gives priority to Vietnam, affirming that Vietnam is the most important partner in the field of official development assistance (ODA). Japan resumed providing ODA to Vietnam in 1992, and since then, has become the largest ODA provider to Vietnam and has made an important contribution to Vietnam's socio-economic development by supporting three priority areas: promoting economic growth, improving people's lives and building institutions through the use of economic resources.

experience and advanced technology of Japan. However, Japan's ODA has changed significantly in 2008. According to the government's policy, from October 2008, the activities of JICA and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) will be merged. The new JICA with a financial resource of about 10 billion USD will become the world's largest bilateral development agency. Basically, JICA's new ODA policy for Vietnam will continue to implement the " three supports" policy, focusing on the following key areas:

1. Promoting economic growth and enhancing competitiveness includes: Improving the investment environment; supporting the development of infrastructure and human resources; supporting the development of the transport, electricity, energy and communications sectors.

2. Improve social living conditions and narrow the development gap including: Developing agriculture and rural areas; prioritizing education, health and medical services; improving the environment

3. Institutional building and strengthening state governance include: institutional reform; improving administrative management capacity.

Japan's ODA policy support for the development of priority areas is consistent with the 10-year strategy and 5-year plan of the Vietnamese government, thus having a positive impact on Vietnam's economic development and solving social problems in recent years.

2. 3.4. Other fields

2.3.4.1. Actively support the completion of the legal system and comprehensive administrative reform.

Perfecting the legal system and administrative reform is an inevitable choice and has a great impact on economic development, enhancing competitiveness and political and social stability.

The Japanese side has been fully supporting the Vietnamese side with new projects related to the improvement of the Vietnamese legal system, including support in the drafting of the revised Law on Civil and Criminal Procedure as well as the Law on State Compensation; improving the process of promulgating legal documents; improving the enforcement of judgments; training judicial officials, etc.

With experience in administrative reform, Japan, specifically the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in Vietnam, has cooperated with the Vietnamese government in the administrative reform program for the period 2001 - 2010. This is considered a very comprehensive program including 4 key areas: institutional reform, organizational structure reform, human resource development and management, and public financial management. In addition, JICA also signed with the Vietnam National Academy of Public Administration the project "Enhancing capacity for officials and staff of the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Public Administration (2004 - 2007) . In parallel with public finance reform, Japan has also supported the Vietnamese government in tax reform in Agreements, Joint Initiatives... but the most specific is the project " Reforming tax administration (2005 -2010)" signed by the General Department of Taxation of Vietnam and JICA , this project ended phase I in July 2008, and was signed for phase II in October.

7/2008 and will start in August 26 of the same year .

Based on the Japanese government's policy towards Vietnam, the JICA Japan Office in Hanoi is one of the most active organizations in supporting Vietnam's administrative reform. The projects that JICA has been implementing have brought about highly appreciated results, contributing to changing Vietnam's legal and administrative system.

2.3.4.2. Promote cultural diplomacy, educational cooperation, exchange and human resource development

26 www.jica.go.jp

As a country of people who are eager to learn and exchange culture, Japan's cultural exchange policy towards Vietnam in particular and ASEAN in general has existed for a long time with very active activities. However, in recent years, the Japanese government has used culture as a foreign policy. Japan's cultural diplomacy and cultural exchange policy have been created by leading scholars and experts under former Prime Minister J. Koizumi in a group called the Japan International Cultural Exchange Forum to study and discuss how to enhance Japan's cultural strength, implement cultural diplomacy and enhance Japan's international influence.

With the changing regional and world context, Japan's cultural diplomacy policy since the early 21st century has focused on three specific goals:

- Promote the world's understanding of Japan and enhance the country's image.

- Avoid conflicts, enhance mutual understanding between different cultures

- Fostering common human values and culture.

On the Vietnamese side, in recent years, the government has highly appreciated cultural diplomacy, especially in the "Workshop on Cultural Diplomacy" in October 2008, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Pham Gia Khiem considered this both a goal and a measure of Vietnam's foreign policy, one of the three main pillars: economic diplomacy, political diplomacy and cultural diplomacy.

With the new cultural diplomacy policy of these two Asian cultures with many similarities, the two governments have created more opportunities for exchange and learning activities, spreading and promoting cultural influence.

Comment