On December 3rd, 2025, in Hanoi, Deputy Minister of Construction Nguyen Xuan Sang had a meeting and worked with Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Finland to Vietnam Pekka Voutilainen on strengthening cooperation in the field of transport infrastructure development between the two sides.
On behalf of the leaders of the Ministry of Construction, Deputy Minister Nguyen Xuan Sang congratulated Ambassador Pekka Voutilainen on being appointed as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Finland to Vietnam in September 2025 and thanked the Ambassador for his interest in promoting cooperation with the Ministry of Construction.
In recent times, Vietnam has invested in a series of projects in line with the spirit of implementing one of the three strategic breakthroughs in infrastructure investment, including investment in transport infrastructure. For example, the North-South high-speed railway project, urban railway projects in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, the Lao Cai - Hanoi - Hai Phong railway project, the Long Thanh International Airport Phase 2 project, the Cai Mep - Thi Vai port cluster project, the Lien Chieu port project, Da Nang...
working scene.
Deputy Minister Nguyen Xuan Sang said that the total public investment capital for these transport infrastructure development projects is expected to be about 1.7 million billion VND. This is a very large investment. Therefore, the Ministry of Construction hopes to cooperate with Finland in two areas. Firstly, Finnish investors and financial institutions can consider providing financial support for investment projects according to the planning approved by the Prime Minister. Secondly, Finnish contractors will learn about and participate in bidding for public investment projects in Vietnam.
“The Ministry is currently drafting a new Vietnam Maritime Code. Therefore, we look forward to learning from Finland’s experience in developing legal regulations on maritime and inland waterways,” Sang affirmed.
Regarding the Draft Strategy for the Development of Vietnam’s Transport Services to 2035, with a vision to 2050, one of the top priorities is enhancing the integration of different modes of transport to reduce logistics costs. The Ministry of Construction hopes to receive support from Finland during the formulation of this Strategy.
The Deputy Minister noted that the two sides could negotiate the signing of a bilateral maritime trade agreement in the near future. Such an agreement would serve as a foundation for comprehensive cooperation between Vietnam and Finland in the fields of maritime and logistics.
Deputy Minister Nguyen Xuan Sang expressed confidence that, with the longstanding cooperation between the two countries and the upgrading of Vietnam - Finland relations to a strategic partnership in October 2025, collaboration between Finnish organizations and enterprises and Vietnamese partners in transport infrastructure projects will receive greater attention in the coming period.
The Ministry of Construction reaffirms its commitment to being ready to cooperate, provide information, and create the best possible conditions for Finnish enterprises to take part more extensively in Vietnam’s transport infrastructure development projects.
Deputy Minister Nguyen Xuan Sang and Ambassador Pekka Voutilainen took a photo with delegates at the working session.
Responding to Deputy Minister Nguyen Xuan Sang, Ambassador Pekka Voutilainen said that the Finnish Trade Office has the participation of many businesses in 12 main sectors and fields. Ambassador Pekka Voutilainen hopes that Finnish organizations and businesses can actively contribute to key projects in Vietnam.
The Ambassador noted that infrastructure development is one of Finland’s strengths. As a country with a long coastline, Finland has highly developed maritime, inland waterway, and aviation sectors. Therefore, Finland has extensive experience in these fields.
Sang highly appreciated Ambassador Pekka Voutilainen's attention to working with the Ministry of Construction in the first days of his assignment in Vietnam. On behalf of the leadership of the Ministry of Construction, the Deputy Minister wished Ambassador Pekka Voutilainen a successful term of office.
At the end of the working session, Deputy Minister Nguyen Xuan Sang assigned the Departments and Agencies under the Ministry to continue to discuss and work specifically with the Embassy of Finland and the Trade Office to promote specific cooperation activities between the two sides in the coming time.