On April 29, 2023, the Vietnamese Embassy in Laos will host the "Global Vietnamese Fatherland Day" and the "Forum for investment and trade promotion of overseas Vietnamese and Laos in Laos 2023" events, along with a gala dinner. The event is being organized in collaboration with various groups, including the Association of Overseas Vietnamese Businessmen (BAOOV), the International intercultural, scientific, and media organization Global Vietnamese Fathers' Day Project Board, the Vietnamese General Association, the Vietnamese Business Association in Laos, and the Vietnamese Association in the Capital Vientiane. The government of Laos has graciously sponsored and supported the proceedings.

These events are greatly valued for the positive ways they have helped the Party's foreign policy be implemented, for reassuring Vietnamese pride in their nation and its people, and for sharing positive images of Vietnam with Vietnamese communities abroad and friends from around the world. In addition, the event provides a platform for businesses and investors to network, share ideas, and explore new avenues of cooperation and investment in Laos. This is all in the name of advancing the role, resources, and strength of the Vietnamese people abroad and helping Laos grow and prosper. Particularly noteworthy is the opportunity to strengthen the friendship, solidarity, and comprehensive cooperative relationship between Vietnam and Laos.

The initiative "Global Vietnamese Fatherland Day" was established in 2015 by a handful of Vietnamese expatriate Vietnamese NGOs, scientists, and intellectuals. Since the project was also designed to become a national-level scientific issue, the Prime Minister made it official on December 11, 2018, that it might be hosted in countries with substantial numbers of abroad Vietnamese residing. This event is a unique opportunity to celebrate and commemorate the various facets of Vietnamese culture, including traditional practices, culinary arts, traditional beauty, beliefs in ancestor worship, affirmation of Vietnamese cultural values, and the strengthening of ties between Vietnamese people and Western acquaintances. There will be a "Global Vietnamese Fatherland Day" in 2023 in two important European and Asian nations: Germany and Laos. Following eight years of planning and preparation, this event has matured into a vital spiritual meal, providing abroad Vietnamese with unforgettable cultural encounters.

Many interested and engaged delegates have flocked to the aforementioned Laos events. "Global Vietnamese Fatherland Day" in Laos drew almost a hundred Vietnamese expats from twenty other nations. Corporations and businesses from 38 countries and territories are researching and investing in Laos, while 150 entrepreneurs and business owners from the Vietnamese and Lao overseas communities, as well as Vietnamese and Lao businesses in Laos, as well as Lao businesses, are attending the "Laos Investment and Trade Promotion Forum 2023." Additionally, Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, and Lang Son are represented. The Laotian government actively promotes many industries, including high-tech agriculture, banking, energy, culture, tourism, and finance, and these entrepreneurs and firms are investigating potential investments and commercial prospects in these areas. Delegates from international diplomatic missions in Laos were among the nearly 200 people present at the aforementioned activities, which included representatives from the two nations' governments, ministries, and agencies.

Vietnamese Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Laos Nguyen Ba Hung said, "This is a new and unique activity, the first event with the participation of both Vietnamese and Lao expatriates." The event, which is planned in close cooperation with several Vietnamese and Laotian institutions, skillfully blends cultural interaction with the promotion of commerce and investment. With a large number of overseas Vietnamese and delegates attending, the event provides a chance for regional and international friends to gain a better understanding of the Vietnamese people's cultural values, spirit of solidarity, and source of strength. They can also bring images of people from Laos. Building a business network towards sustainable economic growth, activities help foster exchanges, share experiences, improve investment and trade between Vietnamese and Lao enterprises in Laos, as well as a large number of prospective firms from other countries.

Mr. Peter Hong, who is a member of the Vietnam Fatherland Front's Central Committee as well as the Association of Overseas Vietnamese Businessmen's General Secretary and Permanent Vice Chairman, has confirmed: Promoting Vietnamese resources abroad has been a consistent focus of the Vietnamese Party and State in recent years. The Vietnamese diaspora is expanding rapidly and firmly establishing itself as a vital and inseparable component of Vietnam's national identity. In order to foster amicable ties and collaboration between Vietnam and nations globally, this is a crucial stepping stone. Approximately 5.5 million Vietnamese people are now living outside of Vietnam, according to data. In 2021, remittances will total 18.1 billion USD, and in 2022, they'll climb 4.5%, boosting the country's economy and social infrastructure. One in seven and a half million Laotians are now residing outside of their home country. The vast Lao expatriate community in wealthy nations is an untapped resource for the country's economic growth and development. The Laotian government may make the most of this asset if it implements programs and policies that encourage its citizens living abroad to come back to the nation and help build it up so that it can enjoy ever-increasing wealth.

According to Mr. Pham Van Hung, chairman of the General Association of Vietnamese in Laos, these activities have significant value for the Vietnamese community in Laos and serve as a catalyst for members to strengthen their bonds with one another. The Vietnamese community in Laos has grown and changed over many generations. It is one of the biggest foreign communities in Laos, with an estimated 100,000 members. Vietnamese Laotians have a long history of patriotism, pride, and national self-respect; they also preserve cultural traditions, follow the laws of Laos religiously, and work actively for national liberation and development. Many Vietnamese serving abroad were presented with honorary orders and medals by the Laotian government in recognition of their outstanding services to the war effort against the French and Americans. Mr. Pham Van Hung emphasized that the Vietnamese community in Laos is deeply connected, always there for each other, and supports each other's growth. They all have a common commitment to their origins and work together to maintain and strengthen the strong bond of camaraderie between Vietnamese and Laotian brothers.

As a follow-up to Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's visit to the Lao People's Democratic Republic in January 2023, the "Forum for promoting investment and trade of Vietnamese and Lao overseas Vietnamese in Laos 2023" and "Global Vietnamese Fatherland Day" were set up. Along with their function in luring investment funds and enhancing collaboration in Laos's socio-economic development, these events also hold tremendous importance in fostering strong bonds of friendship, solidarity, and cooperation between the two states, the two parties, and the people of Vietnam and Laos.