At the reception, the Benin President expressed his desire to elevate the relationship between the two nations to new heights and proposed establishing the Vietnam- Benin Joint Committee to work together on a roadmap for strengthening bilateral relations in the future.

Boni Yayi also spoke glowingly about Vietnam’s international integration efforts and its tremendous political, economic, trade achievements over the years as well as the country’s great national unity bloc-the factor that has helped Vietnam overcome numerous difficulties to achieve success in national construction and defence.

Regarding the Vietnam-Benin relations, the Benin President underlined the need for both sides to exchange information on market and potentiality while expressing his country’s wish to boost imports of Vietnam goods such as rice and consumer goods.

Benin asked Vietnam to send experts aiming to establish agriculture and construction joint ventures and called on Vietnamese businesses to approach its market.

Earlier, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Benin awarded a diplomatic note on Benin’s recognition of Vietnam’s full market economy.

This year, the Republic of Benin is the second West African country after Cote d’Ivoire that has recognized Vietnam’s market economy. Last year Morocco also acknowledged the Southeast Asian country’s status.