From 4th to 6th November 2012 former German Minister for Telecommunication and Post, Dr. Wolfgang Bötsch, visited Hanoi after having received an invitation from the Hanns Seidel Foundation. The three day visit focused on infrastructure development and sustainable economic growth and was a welcomed opportunity to exchange German and Vietnamese experiences made in these fields. Dr. Bötsch attended a seminar at the Vietnamese National University (VNU) where his illustrations on infrastructure developments were well-received by the professors and students, who were keen to hear the former minister’s opinion on developments in Vietnam. The vice chancellor of VNU, Prof. Nguyen Hong Son, welcomed Dr. Bötsch to Vietnam and expressed his interest in continuing the cooperation with Hanns Seidel Foundation. Dr. Bötsch’s presentation was part of a Public Policy lecture series that is being held at VNU.

During a meeting in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with the Deputy Director General of the Department of Multilateral Economic Cooperation, Dr. Bötsch remembered his first visit to Vietnam in 1996 with former Chancellor Helmut Kohl and remarked on the changes he had observed during this short stay in Hanoi. At a seminar and a round table talk with representatives from research institutes, think tanks, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Education, Vietnam’s telecommunication company and the German Embassy provided a platform for an exchange of experiences in telecommunication development in Vietnam and Germany as well as privatization and liberalization efforts in the respective countries. Dr. Bötsch was also received by the German ambassador Ms Jutta Frasch, who thanked the former minister for his efforts towards promoting the partnership between Germany and Vietnam.