The Taoiseach will fly to Malaysia today at the end of the EU/Asia Summit in Vietnam, during which he held talks with the Chinese Prime Minister, Mr Wen Jiabao.
On Saturday Mr Ahern officially opened the Christina Noble Centre for disadvantaged children in Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam. The new facility is part of a network of facilities in Vietnam to help children from impoverished backgrounds achieve a better chance in life.
The Christina Noble Foundation has helped well over 80,000 children in Vietnam, setting up emergency health clinics, shelters for homeless boys, schools, and childcare centres.
In Hanoi attending the EU/Asia (ASEM) meeting, Mr Ahern met Vietnam's minister for industry and ESB International staff who have been working in Vietnam with that state's national electricity company since the 1980s. He also attended a meeting with the Irish business community in the region, hosted by Enterprise Ireland.
He also received an invitation from the Vietnamese Prime Minister, Mr Khai, to pay an official visit to the country. Ireland's trade with the south-east Asian countries has developed strongly in recent years and is centred on education, science, ICT and other high-technology products.
The Taoiseach and Chinese premier discussed the prospects for further co-operation in political, economic, educational and cultural areas. Chinese Prime Minister Wen made an official visit to Ireland last May. During his visit he invited the Taoiseach to visit China in 2005.
The official Vietnam News Agency reported that the Taoiseach told Vietnam's Prime Minister Khai that Ireland planned to set up an office in Hanoi to regulate development aid. He said he would work to boost investment, commercial and cultural relations. It said Mr Khai had asked the Irish Government to create favourable conditions for its businesses to invest in Vietnam. He asked for Irish backing of Vietnam's bid to join the World Trade Organisation and to become a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for the term 2008-2009.
At the EU/Asia meeting, which takes place every two years, leaders pledged to tackle climate change and terrorism. The issue of human rights in Myanmar (formerly Burma) and detention of pro-democracy leader Ms Aung San Suu Kyi overshadowed the summit.
However, in the statement issued at the end of the ASEM meeting, the leaders of the 25 European and 13 Asian nations did not mention the Nobel peace laureate's name or that of her party, which won elections by a landslide in 1990 in a victory ignored by the military. Myanmar was among 13 nations admitted to ASEM on Thursday. (Additional reporting by Reuters)