Vietnam and Austria will continue strengthening cooperation in tertiary education and science and technology, a forum was told in Ho Chi Minh City on May 31.

The Vietnam-Austria forum on tertiary education, science and research was attended by Austrian President Heinz Fischer and Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan.

The forum was considered an important bridge between the two countries’ higher education and science and technology sectors.

Speaking at the event, President Heinz Fischer said he is pleased with development of bilateral ties in the science and research sector through cooperative agreements between tertiary education and research agencies, as well as the framework of the Austrian Southeast Asian University Partnership Network (ASEA-UNINET) initiated by Austrian universities.

Deputy PM Nhan affirmed that the forum represented the two countries’ determination to make tertiary education, science and research a priority in bilateral cooperation.
Vietnam considers education and science and technology a breakthrough for its rapid and sustainable development, he said.

In its tertiary education strategy, Vietnam will improve the quality of higher education by building high-quality universities, strengthening international cooperation in tertiary education and stepping up scientific research at universities, he added.

According to Minister of Science and Technology Nguyen Quan, Vietnam attaches importance to scientific and technological cooperation with Austria , reflected by the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on scientific and technological cooperation between the Vietnamese Ministry of Science and Technology and the Austrian Ministry of Science and Research in late 2011.

The MoU affirms the two ministries’ commitment to creating a mechanism to encourage cooperation between the Vietnamese and Austrian scientific and technological communities, especially between universities and research institutes.

At the forum, the Vietnamese Ministry of Science and Technology and the Austrian Ministry of Science and Research officially launched a programme to support bilateral research cooperation between Vietnam and Austria in the 2012-2025 period.

Under the programme, the two countries’ scientific communities will receive financial support to boost joint research cooperation activities and train scientists in the three priority areas of network security, intelligent transport and renewable energy.

During the event, six memoranda of understanding were also inked between leading universities of Vietnam and Austria .

On the same day, Austrian President Heinz Fischer met with Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee Le Hoang Quan, who expressed his belief that the visit will boost multifaceted cooperation between Austria and Vietnam and between Austria and Ho Chi Minh City in particular.-VNA