A consultation between the Francophonie University Association (AUF) and rectors of universities in the southern region which are members of the AUF has been held in Ho Chi Minh City recently.

The event, jointly organised by the AUF office in HCM City and Hoa Sen University (HSU), was part of activities of a global programme on the French-speaking community. 

HSU Rector Assoc. Prof., Dr Nguyen Ngoc Dien said as Vietnam has brought COVID-19 under control, universities need to recognise opportunities and challenges to the education sector and themselves.

He called on universities to join hands with the AUF to devise a new cooperation strategy in the new context.

Regional Director of AUF Asia Pacific Office Prof. Ouidad Tebbaa said the event was to discuss action plans through innovation and ideas of participants will be considered in the AUF’s development strategies in the coming time.

At the event, the participants discussed the development of the French-speaking community and demand of the education system and priorities of Vietnamese universities, among others.

Universities were advised to bolster investment and human resources development, along with addressing issues of management, self-reliance and application of science and technology.

They also needed to review policy mechanisms and planning amid the transition of human resources from public to private schools, in an effort to meet demand of learners as well as the market, the participants said.