Over the past 30 years, the cooperation relationship between Vietnam and South Korea has made strong developments in all fields, bringing mutual benefits, deep mutual understanding, and trust for both sides. Currently, the two countries maintain a good "Comprehensive Strategic Partnership" relationship.

The delegation worked with the Korea National Pension Service (NPS)

On December 14, 2021, during the official visit of the Chairman of the National Assembly of Vietnam, Vuong Dinh Hue, to South Korea, the bilateral agreement on social insurance between the Government of Vietnam and the Government of South Korea was signed. This is the first government-level bilateral social insurance agreement that Vietnam has signed with a partner country and an important foundation for Vietnam to continue negotiating and signing social insurance agreements with other countries.

During the meeting, the leadership of the NPS stated that the cooperation relationship between the two agencies has been officially formalized since the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in the field of social welfare between the VSS and the NPS in May 2017. To date, many diverse and rich cooperative activities in content and form have been closely coordinated and implemented by the two agencies, such as organizing seminars, online working sessions to share experiences and exchange information, and organizing training programs on social welfare.

Working delegation meets with Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA)

As part of their work in South Korea, the working delegation from the VSS also visited and worked with the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA). Established in 1991 under the auspices of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade of South Korea, KOICA is an international cooperation agency that implements technical cooperation and non-refundable aid activities of the South Korean government for developing countries.

For the VSS, KOICA has conducted annual surveys to assess the need for technical support and training to enhance the capacity of officials; invited representatives of the VSS to participate in training courses on social welfare, IT, and e-government in South Korea. In particular, KOICA has sponsored and supported the implementation of a training program on occupational accident insurance for over 200 Vietnamese officials in the period of 2013-2015 through training and technical seminars held in Vietnam and South Korea.

General Director Nguyen The Manh presents souvenir paintings to representatives of KOICA

At the meeting, KOICA representatives also shared with the VSS delegation their strengths in international training and their ability to advise and develop high-quality human resource training programs for the VSS sector, as well as to consult on the development of international training models in the field of social welfare.

KOICA is ready to support the VSS in connecting with social welfare partners in South Korea; at the same time, they have approved proposals from VSS to sponsor Vietnamese officials' participation in two capacity-building training programs in the period of 2024-2026, including: enhancing the skills to implement the agreement on social insurance between the Government of Vietnam and the Government of South Korea for VSS officials, and enhancing the digital transformation skills in implementing social and health insurance policies for VSS officials.

Working delegation meets with Korea Workers' Compensation & Welfare Service (COMWEL)

According to the program, the working delegation also had a meeting with the COMWEL. This is a social welfare organization managed by the Ministry of Employment and Labor of South Korea, with the responsibility of providing occupational accident insurance and employment insurance for workers in South Korea.

General Director Nguyen The Manh presents souvenir paintings to representatives of COMWEL

In the coming time, the two agencies will continue to strengthen the implementation of cooperation activities, training, and capacity building of officials in the field of occupational accident insurance, employment insurance, digital transformation, and IT application. They will also coordinate and support each other within the framework of the International Social Security Association (ISSA), of which both are members.

Working delegation visits and works with Vietnamese Embassy in South Korea

During their working time in South Korea, the working delegation also visited the Vietnamese Embassy in South Korea and worked with the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Vietnam to South Korea, Nguyen Vu Tung, on the implementation of social insurance policies for Vietnamese workers in South Korea and exchanged solutions to ensure social welfare for these workers./.