New MOU to address skills shortages
Auckland University of Technology (AUT) has marked the 50th anniversary of New Zealand’s bilateral relationship with Viet Nam by expanding its commitment to increase educational opportunities in the country and strengthening our relationship with one of Viet Nam’s top universities.
AUT Vice-Chancellor, Professor Damon Salesa, joined Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Minister of State for Trade and Investment Nicola Grigg on a three-day visit to Viet Nam by a delegation of senior New Zealand business and education leaders designed to increase collaboration with the Southeast Asian nation.
As part of the visit, Professor Salesa signed an MOU with Vietnam National University – Ho Chi Minh City University of Science (VNU-HCMUS) that extends a historic relationship with a new focus on research activity in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Data Science and Human-Computer Interaction.
Professor Salesa said the new agreement will deepen and broaden AUT’s two decade-long relationship with VNU-HCMUS, with a particular focus on the critical skills needed in both countries.
“New Zealand has a proud tradition of using education to strengthen our connections throughout our region – and beyond,” Professor Salesa said.
“Not only will the MOU between AUT and VNU-HCMUS bind our countries closer together, but it will play an important role in producing research and delivering local graduates that will help address Viet Nam’s skills shortage.
“As New Zealand’s only university of technology, AUT is uniquely placed to support our neighbours in countries like Viet Nam to jointly progress research that continues our mutual advancement into the new tech economy.
“With a renewed focused on collaborative research projects, AUT and VNUHCM-US have committed to advance research and innovation in the fields of Computer Science, Data Science and Artificial Intelligence within both universities and produce insights with real-world impact.”