The 13th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam, taking place from January 25 to February 2, has been highlighted by international media.
Streets are lined with the Party’s hammer and sickle flags, national flags and posters to promote the congress. (Photo: VNA)The 13th National Congress
of the Communist Party of Vietnam, taking place from January 25 to February 2,
has been highlighted by international media.
The Associated Press (AP) on January 25 ran an
article, saying that almost 1,600 delegates are attending the congress this
week to approve future policy and help select the nation’s top leaders.
Hanoi’s streets are lined with the Party’s hammer
and sickle flags, national flags and posters to promote the congress, which is
held every five years. Some 4,900 people involved with the event must each take
two tests for the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2.
The article cited Murray Hiebert, a senior associate
of the Southeast Asia Program at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies
in Washington, as saying that Vietnam has grown an average of 6 percent over
the past five years and nearly 3 percent in 2020, when most of its neighbors
slumped into recession due to the pandemic.
Japan’s Nikkei Asia newspaper said the same day that
the congress is an important political event of Vietnam as it takes place at a
time when the country looks to leverage its economic advantage as one of the
few countries that expanded gross domestic product in 2020, up 2.9 percent
thanks to efficient handling of the coronavirus pandemic.
The Republic of Korea (RoK)’s media also covered the
nine-day event, saying the Vietnamese Government targets economic growth of
6.5-7 percent a year during the 2021-2026 period, and aims to turn Vietnam into
a middle income country.
The congress has also made headlines on Australia’s
websites like canberratimes.com.au, thewest.com.au, and the leader.com.au./.