Mr. Do Quoc Hung - Deputy Director of the Department of Foreign Market Development, Ministry of Industry and Trade, delivered the opening speech at a workshop in India. (Photo: Ngoc Thuy/VNA)

On the afternoon of April 2 (local time), the Vietnamese Embassy in India and the IHFC Technology Innovation Center under the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Delhi co-organized the first Vietnam-India Startup Conference in the capital New Delhi.

Attending the workshop on the Vietnamese side were Mr. Nguyen Thanh Hai - Vietnamese Ambassador to India, Mr. Do Quoc Hung - Deputy Director of the Department of Foreign Market Development under the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Mr. Dinh Viet Hoa - Chairman of the National Startup Association; on the Indian side were Ms. A. Dhanalakshmi - Director in charge of administration of the General Department of Science and Technology under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Mr. SK Saha - Project Director of IHFC; and dozens of representatives of startups from the two countries.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Ambassador Nguyen Thanh Hai said that this first workshop is a concrete step towards realizing the bilateral agreement agreed upon by the leaders of the two countries during Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh’s state visit to India last year. In it, the two Prime Ministers agreed to encourage more exchanges and cooperation between the two sides in the fields of innovation, technology and startups.

According to Ambassador Nguyen Thanh Hai, Vietnam and India have made great strides in recent years in the fields of technology, entrepreneurship and innovation, with India emerging as one of the world's leading startup hubs and Vietnam rapidly emerging as one of the most promising startup destinations in Southeast Asia.

The two countries are uniquely positioned to lead in the digital age, fueled by vision, a young and highly skilled workforce, and government policies that support entrepreneurship. The conference served as an excellent platform to explore ways in which the two countries can leverage each other’s strengths, share knowledge, and build partnerships that will pave the way for success in the years ahead.

Ambassador Nguyen Thanh Hai expressed his belief that this conference will lead to stronger connections, new ideas and viable initiatives that will benefit both India and Vietnam.

Speaking at the workshop, Mr. Do Quoc Hung said that in recent years, both India and Vietnam have achieved proud achievements in economic development and innovation.

For India, the digital economy is booming, becoming the world's leading information technology and startup hub. Vietnam is also constantly growing, creating a dynamic and creative startup ecosystem, with many potential projects in the fields of technology, smart agriculture, e-commerce and digital finance.

He emphasized that this conference is a valuable opportunity for the two countries to share experiences, learn and connect to build breakthrough startup projects that are not only successful domestically but also reach out internationally.

In addition, Mr. Do Quoc Hung gave some suggestions for young entrepreneurs in the two countries. One is to develop a multinational e-commerce platform; two is to apply Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology and big data; three is smart payment and logistics; four is to promote e-commerce of agricultural products; five is to protect data and privacy.

Mr. Do Quoc Hung hopes that through the workshop, young businesses of the two countries will find a common voice, creating strong bridges of cooperation.

Also at the conference, Ms. Dhanalakshmi shared India’s experience in nurturing a continuous pool of entrepreneurial human resources through the education system such as entrepreneurship, English, STEM, student exchange with foreign countries, etc., then searching for and incubating startups to create startups in all fields as they are today. In addition, Ms. Dhanalakshmi also highlighted the urgent need to focus on supporting startups in the deep technology field.

Ms. Dhanalakshmi expressed her wish that India and Vietnam strengthen relations in the field of science and technology, student exchange to promote innovation, develop businesses and startups, improve the quality of education as well as science and technology capacity and create conditions for sustainable development for both countries.

At the end of the workshop, representatives of IHFC and the Vietnam Entrepreneurs Association signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the Cooperation Program to develop an innovation ecosystem and creative businesses.

According to the agreement, the two sides will cooperate to implement many contents to support businesses and startups of the two countries to innovate, improve the quality of human resources, share human resources of both sides, and advise corporations, businesses and localities on the establishment, implementation and operation of innovation and startup centers.