Alumni club helps promote Vietnam-Japan friendship hinh anh 1President of the club, Ngo Minh Thuy
(Source: hanoimoi.com.vn)
Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnamese alumni in Japan have made significant contributions to strengthening the friendship between the two countries, said Japanese Ambassador to Vietnam Umeda Kunio.

Addressing at a ceremony making the 15 years of the Club of Vietnamese Alumni in Japan in Hanoi on December 18, the diplomat affirmed that the embassy is willing to support Vietnamese students pursuing their study in his country. 

Ngo Minh Thuy, President of the club, highlighted the organisation’s development and operation over the last 15 years, saying that it has so far admitted over 1,500 members and closely connected with the alumni associations of Southeast Asian nations in Japan.  

Through the club, dozens of Vietnamese junior pupils and students have joined short-term exchange programmes in Japan. Additionally, the club selected and sent postgraduates and young PhDs from Vietnam to pursue higher training courses in Japan under scholarship programmes funded by the Japanese Government and the Toshiba International Foundation.  

According to Thuy, the club have also arranged many exchange programmes, gatherings, workshops and exhibitions, contributing to promoting cultural exchange between the two countries, and helping Vietnamese young people get deeper insights into Japan’s culture and education. 

The number of Vietnamese people learning Japanese language increased to 65,000 in 2015 from only 10,000 16 years ago.

And, the number of Vietnamese students in Japan reached nearly 40,000 in 2015, up nearly 40 times from 2000. Vietnamese students formed the second largest community among over 200,000 international students from more than 170 countries studying in Japan, just after China.-VNA

VNA