During a recent meeting with the Vietnamese Ambassador to Morocco and Cote d’Ivoire Dang Thi Thu Ha who presented a letter of credentials to him, Ouattara expressed his hope that Vietnam will share the experience with his country, especially in agriculture, to help the western African country ensure sustainable food security. He also called on Vietnamese enterprises to build cashew nut and cocoa processing factories in Cote d'Ivoire, saying that he believes Ambassador Ha will be a bridge to contribute to further expanding the bilateral relations between the two countries. For her part, the Vietnamese diplomat conveyed greetings from President Nguyen Xuan Phuc to Ouattara, and congratulated the President and people of Cote d'Ivoire on the achievements in national development they made in recent times. Ha affirmed that Cote d'Ivoire is one of Vietnam's leading trade partners in Africa, and Vietnam always wishes to strengthen its friendship and cooperation with the African nation in all fields. Earlier, the Vietnamese ambassador had meetings with many officials of the host country, discussed measures to further foster friendship and bilateral cooperation in the coming time, and agreed to promote the organization of visits of the Prime Minister and the President of the National Assembly of Cote d'Ivoire to Vietnam, as well as a political consultation meeting between the two countries in 2023. The two-way trade between Cote d'Ivoire and Vietnam topped US$1 billion per year. Vietnam imports cashew, cotton, and raw materials, and exports rice, and consumer goods to the country.