In his opening remarks, NIC Deputy Director Hoang Trung Hieu shared that Viet Nam is working to gradually make science, technology, and innovation its main growth drivers. Along the way, Japan stands out as one of its key partners, bringing strong capabilities in sci-tech, industry, and workforce, along with an extensive network of companies, research institutes, and universities.
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At the Viet Nam – Japan Innovation Forum 2026 (Photo: tapchikinhtetaichinh.vn) |
The NIC at the Hoa Lac Hi-Tech Park (HHTP) has become a hub for Vietnamese and Japanese technology, intelligence and resources backed by wide Japanese ties. The center will keep leveraging those ties to link resources and drive research, testing, training, and specific technology projects, turning Hoa Lac into a well-connected, far-reaching hub for Viet Nam-Japan innovation cooperation, he said.
Ishikawa Isamu, Deputy Ambassador of Japan to Viet Nam, spotlighted promising technologies in agriculture, Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG), smart factories, healthcare, digital infrastructure, and the Internet of Things (IoT).
Science, technology, and innovation are now important pillars of Japan-Viet Nam cooperation. The Japanese Government will continue working with the Vietnamese counterpart to support startups and foster an innovation-friendly environment, thereby contributing to Viet Nam’s socio-economic development, he said.
Former Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Chi Dung stressed that Viet Nam-Japan technological cooperation should pivot in three ways: from technology transfer to joint research, development and commercialization, from isolated innovation hubs to an interconnected innovation network, and from agreements to measurable outcomes.
Dung said innovation must show up in jointly developed technologies, trained workers, established labs and R&D centers, investment projects, new businesses and startups, and new products brought to market.
Under a Japanese Government-backed project launched with the United Nations Development Program, the Viet Nam-Japan Innovation Hub will open at the NIC. It will serve as a platform for real technological cooperation, where companies, research institutes, universities, and experts from both countries can jointly carry out research, testing, training, incubation, and investment matchmaking, and build R&D and technology projects.
The forum featured two in-depth panel discussions on co-creating an innovation ecosystem through Viet Nam-Japan perspectives and pushing cooperation in strategic technological fields.
Delegates discussed ways to deepen cooperation, including building a competitive innovation ecosystem that turns breakthrough research into globally competitive startups using Japan’s experience. Making HHTP a model of Viet Nam-Japan cooperation, shaping a world-class innovation ecosystem, and recommendations for the Viet Nam-Japan Innovation Hub are important factors, as is developing a strategic technology industry model, with examples like the Viet Nam-Japan Innovation Hub and UAV Lab cooperation at Hoa Lac.
Source: VNA