Mr. Hue and Mr. Ayres attended the Vietnam-Australia Education Cooperation Forum in Melbourne on Friday during the former’s official visit to Australia.

Mr. Ayres, who is Australia’s Assistant Minister for Trade and Assistant Minister for Manufacturing, said Vietnam and Australia have opportunities in education and training and share a potential for greater cooperation.

Chairman Hue said that over the past half century education and training cooperation has been a bright spot in the bilateral friendship. With approximately 30,000 students studying in Australia, Vietnam ranks fourth in the number of students there.

Vietnam-Australia Education Cooperation Forum in Melbourne on December 2, 2022 (Photo: Le Tuyet/VOV)

The cooperation has developed human resources to serve each country’s economic growth, connected the two cultures, and fostered the bilateral friendship, said Mr. Hue.

He called on both sides to increase the number of joint training programs between the top education institutions in Vietnam and Australia, with a focus on science and technology and PhD training, speed up the exchange of students and lecturers, promote research cooperation between Australian and Vietnamese universities, and encourage the best Australian universities to open branches in Vietnam.

“Greater attention should be paid to teaching English in Vietnam. Universities and other educational institutions in the two countries should seek cooperation, sign MoUs, and quickly realize them,” said Chairman Hue.

He said he believes the Forum will open a new stage of education cooperation, which will enhance the Vietnam-Australia strategic partnership.