About 110 delegates from nine ASEAN countries and Japan are enjoying the four-day ASEAN-Japan Youth Festival 2023, which commenced in Ho Chi Minh City on Tuesday. 

As part of the activities to celebrate 50 years of ASEAN-Japan partnership, the festival is hosted by the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, with the theme of 'ASEAN-Japan Youth Hand-in-Hand to Implement Sustainable Development Goals.'

The event gathers some 110 participants from Japan and nine ASEAN countries, including Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

With the goal of fostering understanding and exchange among the youth of ASEAN and Japan, the festival encompasses a range of engaging and diverse activities throughout the four days until Friday.

The delegates have been divided into five groups to discuss such topics as quality of education; gender equality and women empowerment; economic development, sustainable cities and communities; energy, climate change response, and recycling-oriented society; and health and welfare.

On the first day of the festival, the participants discussed the role of ASEAN-Japan youth in promoting the implementation of sustainable development goals.  

They took part in a fundraising race for community activities, hosted by the Vietnam Youth Union, in the urban area of the Vietnam National University-Ho Chi Minh City in Thu Duc City on Wednesday.

On the evening of the same day, they attended a festival-welcoming program held by the Central Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union in District 1, with the attendance of Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang as well as representatives of the embassies of Japan and the ASEAN countries partaking in the festival, according to Nhan Dan (People) newspaper.  

The festival’s delegates will experience local culture and cuisine, visit some landmarks in Ho Chi Minh City, view an exhibition featuring friendly relations and youth cooperation between ASEAN and Japan, and plant mangrove trees in the city’s coastal district of Can Gio.

Speaking at the aforementioned program, Deputy PM Quang commented that the ASEAN-Japan cooperative relations have developed fruitfully and gained great achievements over the past 50 years.

This proves that both sides are truly reliable partners of each other, making important contributions to peace, stability, cooperation, and development in Southeast Asia, the Asia-Pacific region, and the world.  

Attributing the sound development partly to the great contributions of young people from Japan and ASEAN countries, Deputy PM Quang urged them to continue their efforts to further promote the ASEAN-Japan relationship and help successfully implement sustainable development goals in each country, for the happiness of the peoples of ASEAN and Japan, and for peace and prosperity in the region and the world.

Like us on Facebook or  follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!