Tuan said Yen Bai boasts abundant natural resources, vast land potential, climate and soil conditions conducive to agricultural development, rich forest resources and diverse mineral reserves, including significant quantities of limestone and other minerals.

Yen Bai is renowned for its stunning natural landscapes, distinctive cultural heritage of ethnic minority groups and favourable conditions to develop various forms of tourism products. The province benefits from ample workforce, low labour costs, affordable land rental, and relatively low infrastructure costs.

In 2022, Yen Bai’s Public Administration Reform (PAR) Index reached 86.77 points, ranking 14th out of the 63 cities and provinces, up seven spots compared to 2021. The Satisfaction Index of Public Administrative Services (SIPAS) stood at 83.87%, ranking 11th out of the 63 cities and provinces, up 3 places from 2021. Its Provincial Governance and Public Administration Performance Index (PAPI) scored 41.8315 points, placing the locality in the "High Average" group.

Yen Bai also places a significant emphasis on environmental protection, inviting investors and enterprises to create a clean environment by building facilities such as biomass and solar power plants.

In particular, Yen Bai stands out as the first locality nationwide to incorporate the happiness index into the Party Congress resolution and outline various solutions to realise and improve the happiness index for its citizens, he said.

The host wished that in the coming time, the Australian Embassy will assist Yen Bai in programmes and projects using official development assistance and non-governmental organisation (NGO) funds in the fields of agricultural and rural infrastructure, disaster resilience, basic healthcare service systems, and urban wastewater treatment facilities.

He said Yen Bai hopes that the Australian investors will explore and collaborate on opportunities in key sectors for local development, such as hi-tech and eco-friendly agricultural and forestry processing, services, and tourism infrastructure.

Lecturer from the Vietnam - Australia Centre shares knowledge about leadership skills to officials in Project 11 class.

Regarding educational cooperation, he proposed that the Australian Embassy allocate short-term scholarships to Yen Bai residents to attend training courses in Australia, and offer continued training to local officials and personnel through the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics and the Vietnam - Australia Centre in the near future.

Russel, in her second visit to Yen Bai, said she was deeply impressed by the province's inclusion of the happiness index in the Party Congress resolution.

She said the friendly and cooperative ties between the Vietnamese and Australian Governments lay an important foundation to further boost all-around cooperation in the future. The diplomat expressed a desire to continue supporting and collaborating with Yen Bai in digital transformation, education, health care, transportation, and gender equality, along with the Australian Government.

The same day, the provincial Political School, in collaboration with the International Cooperation Department of the Vietnam - Australia Centre at the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics, opened a training course on enhancing strategic leadership skills in public administration for 50 officials from the provincial Party Committee in Project 11 class.