Vietnam, RoK look to expand technology, start-ups, innovation cooperation
Hundreds of experts, investors and representatives from investment funds and start-up support organisations of Vietnam and the Republic of Korea (RoK) gathered at the festival for innovative startups (TECHFEST) in Seoul on April 13.
Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Tran Van Tung, and Minister Counsellor and Deputy Head of Vietnam Representative Office in the RoK Nguyen Viet Anh attended the event, which marks the resumption of international connection activities for Vietnam's innovative startup ecosystem, contributing to bringing more Vietnamese startups to the global playing field.
The event offered a good chance for innovative startups that have won prizes at a contest looking for startup talents in the framework of TECHFEST Vietnam to present their projects to more than 30 Korean venture capital funds, including Gostream, FINA and Sobanhang.
According to Deputy Minister Tran Van Tung, there is great potential for Vietnam and the RoK to expand cooperation in the field of start-ups and innovation.
Vietnam can learn from the RoK’s experience in developing a startup ecosystem, support policies from the government, he said, adding that the Korean side is willing to share and cooperate with Vietnam.
Addressing the event, Kim Seon-il from the RoK Ministry of Science and Technology said Vietnam's start-up sector has developed quite rapidly, attracting increasing investment.
The National Agency for Technology Entrepreneurship and Commercialization Development (NATEC) and the National Startup Support Centre (NSCC) of Vietnam has signed cooperation programmes with RoK partners and set up a representative office at Seoul Startup Hub of the RoK.
On this occasion, NSSC will also sign cooperation agreements with Korean investment funds and start-up support organisations to improve the technology and market development ability for Vietnamese innovative start-ups operating in the RoK.
Deputy Minister Tung is leading a delegation of the Vietnamese Ministry of Science and Technology on a working visit to the RoK in the framework of the Knowledge Sharing Programme (KSP) on developing innovative startup ecosystem, funded by non-refundable aid of the RoK government.