Strategic Education partnership with Viet Nam

  • Steven Joyce
Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment

Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment Steven Joyce has today signed a new education partnership with Viet Nam.

Prime Minister John Key and Viet Nam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung witnessed the signing of the New Zealand/Viet Nam Strategic Engagement Plan on Education in Hanoi today.

The plan is a significant development in New Zealand’s long-standing bilateral education relationship with Viet Nam. In August, an Education Co-operation Arrangement was signed at the second New Zealand-Viet Nam Education Forum. The plan builds on and provides more specific actions for the educational collaboration that was committed to in the co-operation agreement.

Under the agreement, both countries have committed to increasing the number of Vietnamese students studying in New Zealand by 30 per cent by the end of 2017.

“The Strategic Plan highlights the importance of increased student mobility and institutional partnerships between both countries and identifies areas for collaboration which are mutually beneficial,” Mr Joyce says. “These include English language training, human resource development and postgraduate and doctoral collaboration.”

“Along with some key institutional linkages, this plan represents a significant milestone in our education relationship with Viet Nam, and provides an opportunity for New Zealand to deliver more joint education initiatives with local partners who are focused on building skills for the workforce, and grow the number of Vietnamese students in New Zealand.”

“In 2014, 2022 Vietnamese students chose to study in New Zealand. There is huge potential for further growth. New Zealand is also well placed to meet Viet Nam’s needs for building its own capability particularly with Viet Nam’s focus on improving education standards to ensure students can contribute fully to their country’s development.”

“Collaborative ventures between our two countries give Vietnamese and Kiwi students the opportunity to learn a huge amount about each other’s cultures, form lasting bonds, and develop knowledge that can be applied to our growing trade, investment and education links with Viet Nam in future years,” Mr Joyce says.