Within the framework of the non-project activity "Agricultural human resource development advisor for Vietnam National University of Agriculture" sponsored by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). On October 13, 2022, the delegation of Vietnam National University of Agriculture (VNUA) led by Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Lan, VNUA’s President, visited and signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Miyazaki Prefecture, Japan.

Attending the signing ceremony, from VNUA, there were Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Lan, Secretary of the Party Committee, VNUA’s President; Prof. Dr. Tran Duc Vien, Standing Vice Chairman of the University Council; Dr. Vu Ngoc Huyen, Standing Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee, VNUA’s Vice President, Director of the Center for Human Resource Supply; Assoc. Dr. Lai Thi Lan Huong, Dean of the Organization and Personnel Office; Ms. Nguyen Xuan Dai, Dean of the Organization and Planning Office; and Mr. Okuda Yoshiki, Center for Human Resource Supply and JICA expert. From Miyazaki Prefecture, there were Mr. Kono Sunjin, Governor; Mr. Matsuura Naoyasu, Director of the General Policy Department; Mr. Yokayama Hirofumi, Director of the Department of Labor, Tourism, Industry, and Trade; and Mr. Kubo Masahiro, Director of the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries.

 

Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Lan, VNUA’s President, and Mr. Kono Sunjin, Governor of Miyazaki Perfecture, sign the cooperation agreement

Delegates participating in the signing ceremony

After more than 3 years of research and discussion about the issues of each party, Miyazaki Perfecture and VNUA agreed to sign a cooperation agreement with the following main contents:

- Exchanging information related to professions, techniques, and recruitment.

- Miyazaki Perfecture provides information related to the living conditions and working environment or the recruitment needs for Vietnamese people.

- VNUA provides information about the contents of the training or the labor that wish to work, etc. for Miyazaki Prefecture.

- Cooperating in sending and receiving engineers, technical interns, and specific skilled workers; sending students for internships.

- The two sides cooperate in implementing a number of activities under the project "Agricultural human resource development consultant for Vietnam National University of Agriculture".

Miyazaki Prefecture is located in the Kyushu region of Japan. It is bordered by the sea to the east, Kumamoto prefecture to the west, Kagoshima prefecture to the south, and Oita to the north. With a total area of 7,735.31 km2, ranked 14/47 in Japan; its population reached 1,073,054 people in 2019. Miyazaki has mountains, plain, and midland terrains. Therefore, this place focuses on developing high-quality agricultural industries such as cultivation, animal husbandry, fishing, aquaculture, and forestry, etc. With the balanced development of the agricultural sector, the service industry there is also very developed, especially processing agricultural products and aquatic products. With the strong growth in output in recent years, Miyazaki has a need to recruit foreign labor sources, mainly agricultural workers. Miyazaki Prefecture has about 2,400 Vietnamese people working in the province, mainly technical interns, accounting for nearly half of the total number of foreigners, which has contributed to building a deeper and wider relationship between Vietnam and Miyazaki Prefecture.

 

VNUA’s delegation takes a photo with the delegates of Miyazaki Prefecture

Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Lan, VNUA’s President, was very emotional when returning to Miyazaki Prefecture, her "second homeland". Prof. Dr. Nguyen Thi Lan said: “The knowledge and experience obtained during my research at Miyazaki are invaluable assets that have helped me a lot in participating in building regulations and policies on developing Vietnam's agriculture and running the university. Coming to Miyazaki this time with a different position and attitude, I am very happy and hope to contribute to promoting the close relationship between Japan and Vietnam in general and between Miyazaki Prefecture and VNUA in particular in the field of cooperation in human resource development”. At the signing ceremony, Mr. Kono Shunji, the Governor of Miyazaki Prefecture, highly appreciated the achievements and efforts of the university which contributed to the construction of agriculture and rural development of Vietnam during the recent years. The Governor said that this was the first time the Miyazaki Prefecture signed a cooperation agreement with an overseas university. The Governor also wished that besides cooperation in developing agricultural human resources, the two parties would continue to collaborate in many other fields in the future.

 

Visiting an agricultural production company where many Vietnamese trainees work in Miyazaki Prefecture

Through the activities within the framework of cooperation between Miyazaki Prefecture and VNUA, with the help of JICA experts, in the future, many Vietnamese students and workers would come to Miyazaki Prefecture to study, practice, and work in the fields of agriculture and supporting industries such as preservation technology and food processing. After completing the internship or the working time in Miyazaki Prefecture, the laborers who return to Vietnam would be provided supports by the project in terms of continuing to receive information on job vacancies at Vietnamese and Japanese enterprises in the fields of agriculture, food or startups, thereby contributing to improving the quality of human resources and developing Vietnam's agriculture in the coming years.

Visiting a cold vegetable storage

Visiting a traditional Japanese winery

Agriculture is an important sector for both Vietnam and Japan in general and Miyazaki Prefecture in particular. Both parties agreed on the trend of sustainable agricultural development in the direction of green transition agriculture and circular agriculture, contributing to reducing greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. The success of this cooperation would contribute to the sustainable agricultural development of each party.

The signing ceremony of cooperation between Miyazaki Prefecture and VNUA was reported by Japan Central Television (NHK) and many newspapers and television agencies in Japan. Please see details at:

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/lnews/miyazaki/20221014/5060013895.html

https://newsdig.tbs.co.jp/articles/mrt/178452?display=1&mwplay=1

https://www.the-miyanichi.co.jp/kennai/_66763.html

https://news.yahoo.co.jp/articles/cad526ddc811f8f84fc966172e8024a718461b9c