French President Francois Hollande visits VNU and speaks about the common future of France and Vietnam

VNU President Nguyen Kim Son receives French President Francois Hollande

Also attending the program, on the Vietnamese side, there were Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim Tien - Minister of Health, President of the Vietnam - France Friendship and Cooperation Association; Mr. Dao Viet Trung - Member of the Party Central Committee, Head of the Office of the President, and representatives of leaders of agencies under the Government Office, the Office of the President, central ministries and branches. On the international guests' side, there were delegations of parliamentarians, leaders of central ministries and branches, and diplomatic agencies of the French Republic.

This is the first visit to Vietnam by a French president in 12 years, since President Jacques Chirac's visit in 2004, and is an opportunity for President Hollande to present new directions in the cooperative relationship between the two countries in the 21st century. This is also the first time a French head of state has visited a Vietnamese university.

This visit of President Francois Hollande to VNU is of great significance, marking a strong development step and opening up many prospects for cooperation in the field of education and training between the two countries. At the same time, this event contributes to affirming the leading and pivotal role of VNU in the Vietnamese education system and enhancing the position of Vietnamese universities in the international arena.

Speaking at the ceremony, French President Francois Hollande expressed his joy at visiting Vietnam and VNU and highly appreciated the cooperation between the Polytechnic University of Paris and VNU.

French President Francois Hollande speaks at the ceremony

President Hollande said: "The affection between the two countries has helped build a foundation for bilateral cooperation. I hope that universities in Vietnam as well as in France will have quality training programs. I know that many people have been trained in France and returned to Vietnam to contribute to the country, such as Professor Ngo Bao Chau."

President Hollande said that France will stand side by side with Vietnam to promote advanced technologies, pay attention to training and is ready to support Vietnam in developing new technologies. France is also ready to support Vietnam in developing sustainable urban areas and in the field of climate change.

In particular, he emphasized that education is an important part of the Vietnam-France relationship. In the future, France hopes to welcome more Vietnamese students to study in France. Currently, there are 7,000 Vietnamese students in France, but this number is still small. France wants to promote joint training between universities of the two countries, to do that it is necessary to expand the teaching and learning of French in Vietnam.

According to the French President, the cooperation between VNU and the Polytechnic University of Paris in training high-quality human resources will contribute significantly to solving current common difficulties and challenges, while helping to strengthen the good traditional relationship between Vietnam and the French Republic. In the coming time, VNU can strengthen cooperation with French research institutes and universities in many fields.

The French President said that during this visit, Vietnam and France will discuss cooperation prospects and sign many important documents. In terms of health, the two sides have signed agreements between the best research institutes in Vietnam and the largest research institute in France to enhance cooperation between the two sides. In terms of culture, France will also open a branch of the French Cultural Institute in Ho Chi Minh City, expanding cooperation in the fields of books and films so that the two sides can better understand each other's culture.

Director Nguyen Kim Son spoke at the ceremony

Expressing his joy and honor at welcoming the French President to visit VNU, Director Nguyen Kim Son said that VNU is honored and proud to inherit the quintessence from the academic tradition of Indochina University - the first modern Western-style university education center on the Indochina peninsula founded by the French in 1906 and with the tireless efforts of generations of staff, lecturers and students over the past decades, VNU has developed into a leading multidisciplinary, multi-field, high-quality, international-standard research-oriented university in Vietnam.

In recent years, VNU has built and maintained bilateral cooperation with many major French universities such as the Polytechnic University of Paris, the University of Nantes, the University of Paris Sud, etc. On this occasion, VNU and the Polytechnic University of Paris signed a Cooperation Agreement with the presence of Mr. Yves Demay - Director of the Polytechnic University of Paris. The signing ceremony between VNU and the prestigious Polytechnic University of Paris is a vivid demonstration of the effective cooperation between VNU and French partners. In addition, VNU has also actively participated in multilateral cooperation mechanisms and programs within the framework of the Francophone Community, the Francophone University Agency - AUF, etc.

It can be seen that the solid foundation for the cooperative relationship between VNU and French partners originates from the historical relationship between VNU and French academia. VNU will be more active in consolidating this special relationship through further developing cooperative training and scientific research activities with French universities, thereby not only contributing to promoting cooperation in the field of higher education between Vietnam and France, but also bridging the culture, education and science between Asia and Europe.

“I believe that the visit of the French President will connect the past and the future, open up many new cooperation opportunities, and create momentum for a breakthrough in the Vietnam-France relationship in general, and between VNU and French universities in particular,” VNU President Nguyen Kim Son shared.

Director of VNU Nguyen Kim Son and Director of Polytechnic University of Paris Yves Demay signed a cooperation agreement.

Some cooperation programs of VNU with French educational partners:

After the visit of President Jacques Chirac 12 years ago, the French University Center in Hanoi (PUF Hanoi) was established under the Agreement between the French and Vietnamese governments to implement French training programs in Vietnam. During the period 2006-2014, PUF Hanoi implemented 08 training programs, 509 students were awarded degrees. From January 23, 2015, PUF Hanoi was renamed the Center for Training and Development Management, under the International Francophone Institute, VNU.

Since November 2010, VNU has cooperated with the Francophone University Agency (AUF) to organize, manage and operate the International Francophone Institute. Many VNU staff and students have received scholarships from AUF.

In July 2014, the Master of Information Technology program of the International Francophone Institute was awarded the “International Training Program” certificate by the Francophone University Organization (AUF). This is the first French-language training program in the world to be granted the AUF international training program certificate, contributing to affirming the prestige and brand of the program and expanding the program internationally, thereby increasing the multicultural and multinational nature of IFI.

Member units of VNU have been effectively implementing many cooperation activities in training, scientific research and exchange of lecturers and students with French partners. Specifically: The University of Natural Sciences cooperates with the University of Toulon in training Bachelor of Chemistry and Master of Advanced Materials and Environment, cooperates with the University of Bordeaux in training Master of Nuclear Physics and Applications; The University of Social Sciences and Humanities cooperates with the University of Toulouse Jean Jaurès in training Bachelor of Clinical Psychology, cooperates with the University of Toulouse II - le Mirail in training Master of Child and Adolescent Development Psychology Master of Sociology in Public Policy and Enterprise Management - MAPE; The Faculty of Law cooperates with the University of Social Sciences Toulouse I, University Jean Moulin Lyon 3 and Montesquieu Bordeaux 4 in training Master of Law in Economic Cooperation and International Business; The International Francophone Institute cooperates with Claude Bernard de Lyon University in training Masters in Information Technology "Data transmission and computer networks" and cooperates with La Rochelle University in training Masters in Information Technology "Intelligent and multimedia systems"...

>>>(Photo) French President Francois Hollande visits VNU

Sinh Vu - Photo: Bui Tuan - VNU Media