Rationale:

Tertiary educational institutions in Vietnam have been charged with responding to the challenges of food safety and climate change impact. One strategy is to enhance human capacity and expertise to deal with these problems. The situation is even worse in central Vietnam where environmental and food safety problems are of increasing concern for both government and local communities. In addition to improving food security and environmental health, a focus on tourism that is built on the cultural and historical landscape of the region will provide a sustainable pathway for local people to thrive. Meanhile, Ireland has a reputation as a producer of high quality and safe foodstuffs and is also recognised internationally for its clean air and green landscapes which attract millions of visitors every year. Protecting Ireland’s natural resources and continuing to ensure the high quality of its food products is recognised as having a major impact on it’s tourism sector. 

Addressing the situation in Vietnam, HU and DIT have taken the initiative to pool resources to attract qualified in-service civil servants and graduate students in Vietnam and provide them with advanced training, specifically in the fields of food safety, environmental health and tourism management. At HU, such training programmes are still in an embryonic stage. Although HU offers both Bachelors and Masters in Food Technology and Environmental Science, these programmes are not tuned to provide an efficient response to the country’s current need. They are also not designed to prepare students to conduct future studies and research in English-speaking educational institutions. Therefore, HU needs to tap into its partnership with leading educational institutions in order to gain effective support in terms of expertise and experience sharing.  DIT is a partner who shares the common vision of building human capacity for Vietnam in the effort to respond to the challenges that the country is facing. DIT is the sole provider of professional training for Environmental Health Officers in Ireland, through its BSc in Environmental Health, that is mapped to the EU Food Laws and the requirements of the Food Safety Authority of Ireland. In addition DIT also offers MSc programmes in Food Safety Management and Environment Health & Safety. DIT is willing to cooperate with HU to bridge the gap of constrained expertise, experience and resources in order to realize their shared goals in tertiary education. Collaborating with HU in this project will enhance the internationalization of curricula at DIT through well-recognized training programs, especially in the field of food safety management, environmental health and tourism management. Via this joint endeavour, DIT can also establish an efficient channel to disseminate their scholarship and experience across the ASEAN region.