At a reception for President of the Osaka Metropolitan University Masahiro Tatsumisago on October 2, Duc affirmed that Japan is an important partner of the southern largest economic hub and has actively contributed to improving the quality of human resources of the city.

The host highly valued the working visit of the Japanese university’s delegation to HCM City on the occasion when the two countries are organising many activities to celebrate the 50th founding anniversary of diplomatic relations, and in the context of Vietnam-Japan relations are flourishing across fields.

He applaused the good cooperation between the Osaka Metropolitan University and Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Minh City (VNU-HCM) and Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology, showing the support for the Japanese education institution to strengthen cooperation and promote exchange and reception of excellent students from HCM City’s universities to study in Japan.

Some high schools in HCM City have been providing Japanese language training programmes for local students, which are expected to be a good source for undergraduate and postgraduate educational cooperation activities between the two sides, Duc said.

Tatsumisago said the Osaka Metropolitan University considers the Vietnam National University, Hanoi (VNU) and VNU-HCM as strategic partners.

He expressed his hope that the municipal People's Committee would support and create conditions for the Japanese university to strengthen cooperation towards increasing the number of excellent students from HCM City’s universities studying in Japan, and deploy community research projects in HCM City.

Merged by two more than 140-year-old public universities in Osaka, the Osaka Metropolitan University is one of Japan's leading public universities, he said, adding that many Vietnamese students are studying at the university.