1900 2039 
p.dbcl@ntt.edu.vn
On May 7, at the University of Economics and Law (Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City), the 13th Plenary Session of the Conference of Rectors of Francophone Universities in the Asia-Pacific (CONFRASIE) took place.
The Conference of Rectors of Francophone Universities in the Asia-Pacific (CONFRASIE) was officially established in 1999 and holds its plenary session every two years. It is a rare forum that brings together a large number of leaders of higher education and research institutions from dozens of countries across the Asia-Pacific region to exchange and discuss common issues in higher education in the region. CONFRASIE plays an important role in identifying and promoting the potential of expert networks among member institutions, as well as in shaping strategic directions for higher education and research. In recent years, the conference has also accompanied member institutions in implementing university governance innovation activities with the support of experts from the Francophone network.
The 13th session was held under the theme “University–Industry Dialogue: Challenges and Social Responsibility of Higher Education”, with the participation of nearly 100 representatives from 88 universities, educational and research institutions across 11 countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
Notably, the conference was attended by: Mr. Youk Ngoy (Secretary of State for Higher Education and Francophone Cooperation, Kingdom of Cambodia); Mr. Khamphai Sisavanh (Deputy Minister of Education, Lao PDR); Mr. Jean-Pierre Nirua (Minister of Education, Vanuatu); Deputy Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Van Phuc; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Huynh Thanh Dat – Director of Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City; and Prof. Jean-Paul de Gaudemar, Director General of AUF.
The session provided an opportunity for universities to discuss education and science policies as well as challenges currently facing higher education institutions, including the quality of training and research programmes, graduate employability, and the social responsibility of universities.
At the event, four parallel thematic sessions were organized on the following topics: training programmes and socio-economic needs; research and knowledge transfer within the Francophone university community; cultural development and entrepreneurship practices; and university governance and challenges of social responsibility.
Dr. Tran Thi Nhu Trang, Head of the Faculty of Chemical and Food Technology, representing Nguyen Tat Thanh University at the session on “University governance and challenges of social responsibility,” highlighted the lack of equity between public and private higher education institutions in several aspects, including regulations and policies, government funding, and access to large-scale project funding, while their social responsibilities remain the same. These observations were recorded in the summary report of the 13th CONFRASIE conference, serving as a basis for the AUF Asia-Pacific Office to develop strategies and projects to further support member institutions in addressing the issues raised.
After the discussions, new CONFRASIE members were introduced, including:
- Battambang University, Cambodia
- University of Foreign Languages – Hue University, Vietnam
- University of Phayao, Thailand
- Savannakhet University, Laos
- Sookmyung Women’s University, South Korea
- Chonbuk National University, South Korea
CONFRASIE and the Conference of French University Presidents (CPU) then signed a cooperation agreement on education during this 13th session.
Following the presentation of the summary report from the four thematic sessions by the Secretariat, Prof. Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Dien, President of CONFRASIE, officially closed the conference at 17:30 on the same day.
Source: Department of Quality Assurance
