On April 27th, 2018, in the framework of an official visit to Singapore and the 32nd ASEAN Summit attended by Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, the University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City (UEH) signed two Memoranda of Understanding to promote innovative activities and the start-up ecosystem in Vietnam.

The two MOUs were signed by Prof. Nguyen Dong Phong - President of UEH, Prof. Arnoud De Meyer - President of Singapore Management University (SMU), Mr. Don Lam - CEO and Co-Founder of Vina Capital, Chair of SMU’s International Advisory Council in Vietnam, and Mr. Truong Gia Binh - Chairman of the Private Sector Development Committee (PSDC) in the presence of Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

The first MOU between UEH, SMU and Vina Capital aims to strengthen innovation and improve the start-up ecosystem in Vietnam.

Under the terms of this MOU, UEH shall establish and operate the Joint Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, applying the operating model of the Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship (IIE) which is a very successful Singapore model. Moreover, SMU shall be a knowledge partner, contributing with its relevant human resources, domain of expertise and networks to establish the Joint Institute and its program offerings. In particular, Vina Capital is launching a new $100 million tech fund, which will support start-ups under the Joint Institute as well as promising tech start-ups across Vietnam. This is the first time SMU has transferred the operating model of IIE. In addition, the three partners shall co-organize events and activities to support and nurture the growth of entrepreneurship and innovation in Vietnam and Singapore. They also plan to jointly facilitate internship placements for entrepreneurial students from SMU and Vietnam to start-ups in Vietnam.

The second MOU between UEH, SMU and the Private Sector Development Committee aims to prepare a report for the Vietnam government, propose solutions that would enhance the innovation and entrepreneurship environment in Vietnam based on Singapore’s experiences.

Established nearly 20 years ago, SMU is a public university which is enjoying a rapid development in the economics and administration fields. Also, SMU is one of the top institution supporting start-ups in Singapore.

UEH is one of Vietnam’s leading universities for economic and business management education. UEH has implemented these breakthrough steps, leading university educational innovation in Vietnam in the direction of internationalization and integration to the world.

In the meeting, Prof. Nguyen Dong Phong - President, Assoc. Prof. Phan Thi Bich Nguyet - Vice President along with other delegates of UEH and Prof. Arnoud De Meyer President - President with other leaders of SMU realized that UEH and SMU’s business school are very much similar as they both specialize in management education, with a strong interest in innovation and entrepreneurship. This enables both universities to collaborate and support each other to develop. In particular, UEH will accumulate experiences and learn from the university internationalization strategic model associated with innovation of SMU.

Some photos of the event

Source: Department of Communication and Public Relations - UEH,

Department of Research Administration - International Relations - UEH;

Office of Corporate Communications & Marketing - SMU.