Arabfields, Meriem Senouci, Correspondent, Hanoï, Vietnam — Vietnam’s National University of Agriculture is seeking to deepen scientific and academic cooperation with China Agricultural University as both institutions turn greater attention to food systems, rural development and agricultural policy.
The latest step came on October 7, when Shenggen Fan, director of China Agricultural University’s Institute of Global Agricultural and Food Policy and Economics, visited the Vietnam National University of Agriculture in Hanoi with research assistant Simin Cheng. Their discussions brought together lecturers and researchers from several faculties, including accounting and business administration, economics and management, and social sciences.
Fan presented research on policy innovation and the transformation of food systems, with particular attention to agricultural emissions, investment in research and development, sustainable food consumption and agricultural science and technology policy. The discussion also looked ahead to the development of China’s agricultural sector over the next 15 years.
For researchers at the Vietnamese university, the exchange offered something more practical than another academic meeting. It provided an opportunity to compare policy approaches and research methods with Chinese specialists working on issues that are increasingly relevant to Vietnam, where agriculture faces pressure from climate change, resource constraints and changing consumer demand.
The cooperation has already gained momentum in 2026. In June, the two universities launched joint research programmes focusing on China’s rural transformation and country and regional studies. The initiatives followed a memorandum of understanding between the Vietnamese university and the College of International Development and Global Agriculture at China Agricultural University.
Student mobility has also become part of the relationship. Four Vietnamese students from the Faculty of Economics and Management took part in an international summer school organised by China Agricultural University in July, travelling to Beijing and Yunnan for academic and field activities. The programme brought together students and specialists around questions of global development, agriculture and international cooperation.
The partnership reflects a wider expansion of Vietnam’s agricultural university links with Chinese institutions. In April, a Vietnamese delegation led by VNUA President Nguyen Thi Lan held talks with China Agricultural University in Beijing and took part in a Vietnam-China forum on higher education, science, technology and innovation. Other agreements signed during the same period covered education, faculty development, student exchanges and research.
The figures emerging from 2026 suggest that the relationship is moving beyond occasional academic visits. Two joint research programmes were launched in June, four Vietnamese students joined the China Agricultural University summer programme in July, and new institutional agreements with Chinese universities were pursued during the year.
The next phase is likely to focus increasingly on applied research. Based on the areas highlighted by researchers in 2026, cooperation could expand into sustainable food systems, agricultural emissions, rural transformation, biotechnology, food processing and the use of science and technology to improve farm productivity. Vietnam and China are also likely to place greater emphasis on training young researchers and creating projects that can move from academic findings to practical applications.
For students and researchers involved in the exchanges, the value of the partnership is measured not only in agreements or conferences but in access to new research environments and professional networks. As cooperation develops, those links could become one of the more durable channels for agricultural knowledge sharing between the two neighbouring countries.
