Unisa forges links with Vietnam
Unisa has established a unique partnership with the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics in Vietnam to jointly host a series of public lectures, seminars and workshops as well as offer short learning courses.
Unisa’s vice-chancellor Professor Mandla Makhanya signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the academy’s vice-president, Dr Nguyen Tat Giap, in Hanoi on October 3 during Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa’s visit to Vietnam to strengthen bilateral political, economic and trade relations.
The academy is an organisation of the Communist Party’s central committee and the Vietnamese government. It functions as a training centre for the party’s high-ranking members in the public sector and a national research centre on party and government policy and political science, social science and public policies.
Makhanya said the idea of forging a partnership with the academy was sparked after the Vietnamese ambassador in South Africa, Le Huy Hoang, attended a lecture on South Africa’s National Development Plan hosted by Unisa’s school of governance last year.
“They felt it was necessary for us to have this relationship with one of their institutions in Vietnam and they identified the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics.”
He said they signed the MOU after high-level delegations of representatives from the Vietnamese govern- ment and the academy visited Unisa twice, expressing huge interest in the initiative.
“When they informed us that our deputy president was going to pay them a visit, together with cabinet ministers, and they were keen that the signing part takes place during this period, we said ‘let’s co-operate with them’, so that’s how we ended up going [to Vietnam] so quickly.”
“I’m surprised by the interest from their side. It is amazing.”
Makhanya said that he plans to link up his academics with their counterparts from the academy so they can collaborate on joint scientific research projects.
“We indicated that because of our capacity as an open distance learning institution and their sophisticated IT [information technology] facilities, we could link up with their students directly from here, as we do with our own students. So we can get some teaching members of staff from time to time interacting with their students directly from here.”
The salient features of the MOU include:
between the two parties in the field of public administration and training and conducting scientific research in areas such as politics, journalism and communications;
- ship and managerial skills of key senior and middle-ranking government officials;
officials and experts between the two institutions; short-term training courses for staff members of Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics; and
resources and other forms of publication between the two parties.
According to the MOU, funding for the joint series of public lectures, seminars and workshops will be shared by both parties.
“Where necessary, they will conduct joint fundraising for training and research by Unisa on behalf of the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics,” the MOU states.
Makhanya said that the academy had expressed huge interest in Unisa’s communication sciences programme.
“As they put it, they have a school of journalism which operates outside the head office of the academy, and for them that’s an area they would like us to pursue almost immediately.”
He told the academy that Unisa did not have a school of journalism — only a department of communica- tion science — but that they were not worried about this at all.
“They also have an interest in international relations that is offered by our department of political science, but it is not a matter that they require urgently. They are also keen on some of our management programmes, but we will also be identifying those at a later stage.”
Said Makhanya: “For now it is mainly the relationship that must be forged between their school of journalism and our department of communication science.”
He said Unisa would be inviting academics from Vietnam early next year “so that we can then dedicate a few days to expose them to what we offer in [the] areas of communication science and international relations”.
“They said they are prepared to send senior students as well, because we said if they do send senior students then we can give them seminars from the side of the university.”
Makhanya said that the details about when the first batch of Vietnamese students would start receiving tuition would be finalised when the academy staff visits early next year.
“We are persuading them to consider coming in February, so that by the second semester we will actually be offering some of these programmes. We will design those [programmes] that are tailor-made to their own situation.
“Although the agreement says that it’s for three years, it’s clear it’s not going to be a short-term relationship.”
He said the academy trains those holding high office in Vietnam, including government ministers.
“There are ministers from time to time who retreat to the academy for training [in public administration and governance], which I found to be very interesting.”
“They [the academy] are trying very hard to get things to move in the right direction, but to also work with their peers outside Vietnam. I think they are highly committed to that.”