Vietnam, EU Hold Higher Education Forum

Vietnam and EU on November 3 held a higher education forum, which was expected to boost the educational cooperation between the Southeast Asian country and the European nations, state media reported. The forum aims to help universities, educational managers and scientific researchers study opportunities for bilateral and multilateral educational cooperation, thus developing joint projects and programs, and reaching agreements, said Bui Van Ga, Deputy Minister of Education and Training. According to Ga, many European countries have granted scholarships to Vietnamese postgraduates over the years. Besides, the Vietnamese government has also sent students overseas through projects. However, he said, educational cooperation between Vietnam and the European nations has not yet matched their potential. The European countries are helping leading Vietnamese universities implement 18 projects in such areas as energy and agriculture, said Tom Corrie, deputy head of cooperation of the EU delegation to Vietnam. EU provided 28 scholarships to Vietnamese students in 2016, he said, adding that close to 50,000 Vietnamese students are studying abroad with around 15,000 in Europe. (Tien Phong – Pioneer Nov 4 p6, qdnd.vn Nov 3)