The 2nd Study Mission for Strategic Leaders in Japan

From December 1 to 10, 2024, a 10-day Japan visit program was held for a total of 18 people, including 13 Vice Minister-level officials from central and local government and five Director-General and Deputy Director General level officials from related organizations.

This program is made for selected leaders who have previously completed on-site training at the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics (HCMA). As with the first program held in October this year, the program focused on the central theme of "industrial development using AI, DX and semiconductors as examples," and covered 1) strategic leadership and public policy knowledge and skills, 2) public management and governance, 3) administrative reform, 4) digitalization, AI, 5) green growth, GX and EX.

The lectures were useful for understanding Japan and considering the administration of Vietnam, and included themes such as "The role of leaders in administration and the development of the professional civil service system," "Local government administration and finance," and "Measures for a declining birthrate and aging society." In addition, regarding "DX and AI," which is of particular interest to the Vietnamese side, follow-up lecture was given by Kazuhiro Suda, former Director-General of Telecommunications Bureau, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications' who lectured at HCMA on November 5th. In addition, the participants learned about Japan's digitalization policy at the Digital Agency.

As part of site visit program, the participants visited Hiroshima Prefecture and Himeji City, where they learned about the administrative DX initiatives and utilization of AI technology in each local government. Especially in Himeji city, they had the opportunity to experience the use of digital technology for the recreation of the historic Himeji Castle as well as AR (Augmented reality) app for tourist guidance.

Regarding the semiconductor industry, which is one of the biggest interest of Vietnamese side, they learned about the Japan’s policy on semiconductor industry at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and received introduction from Disco Corporation, which sells semiconductor manufacturing equipment to learn about the semiconductor manufacturing process and exchanged opinions on the future development of Vietnam's semiconductor industry.

During their visit to Japan, they paid courtesy calls to Liberal Democratic Party of Japan, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Hiroshima Prefecture and Himeji City. They also had exchanges at the Chugoku Economic Federation and the Hiroshima Chamber of Commerce and Industry and strengthen the network with them. After returning home, these members, who are key leaders of the Vietnamese government and represent the next generation, are expected to play a role as bridges to strengthen friendly relations between Japan and Vietnam.