The Ministry of Science and Technology is urgently finalising plans to build the Vietnam-Korea Institute of Science and Technology (V-KIST) on an area of over 20 ha in the Hoa Lac hi-teck park.

All necessary procedures are also under preparation to kick-start the project later this year, said Deputy Minister Tran Viet Thanh at the third conference between Vietnam and the Republic of Korea in Hanoi on March 20.

The event created a good chance for the two sides to increase bilateral cooperation in the field and determine the scope of the facility which is expected to become a multi-sector research institute with modern equipment and highly qualified staff.

The first phase of the project will run between 2014 and 2017 at a cost of around 70 million USD, half of which being sourced from the RoK non-refundable aid package.-VNA