On October 24 the Vietnam-Japan Friendship Association officially opened the Vietnam-Japan Culture Club in Hanoi and marked the first anniversary of the Vietnam-Japan Business Club.

The Vietnam-Japan Business Club was established in November 2009, attracting hundreds of Vietnamese entrepreneurs as well as Japanese entrepreneurs who invest in Vietnam.

Over the past year, the club has forged ties with Japanese organizations such as the Japan Industry and Trade Association in Vietnam, and chambers of commerce and industry in Japan’s prefecture or cities. It has also established direct transactions between Vietnamese and Japanese enterprises.

In addition, the club has helped to train Vietnamese workers and promote the projects to manufacture high-grade steel, refit ships, and build ports.

The Vietnam-Japan Culture Club, headed by renowned Vietnamese artist Chu Thuy Quynh, comprises many poets, writers, artists and lovers of Japanese culture.

At the ceremony, former Japanese Prime Minister Hatoyama said he was excited by the establishment of Vietnam-Japan Culture Club and promised to promote large-scale projects funded by Japan’s ODA.