The Hanoi Times - Ha Noi Science and Technology University, jointly funded by the Vietnamese and French governments with an initial investment of US$242 million, will open in September.

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Thien Nhan said that the university would boost education standards in the country.

Nhan said that the establishment of the university was a symbol of the good relations enjoyed by Viet Nam and France.

Nhan said that regarding education and training programmes, the university would co-operate with French universities.

Under a decision issued by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung last month, the university, o­ne of the four public universities under the direct management of the Ministry of Education and Training, will be sponsored by the Government.

Meanwhile, the French Government has pledged to help Viet Nam boost staff training, particularly in the field of science and technology.

Professor Nguyen Van Hieu, a prestigious scientist of Viet Nam, said that the establishment of the university would greatly benefit Vietnamese scientists and researchers.

Hieu said that the Viet Nam Science and Technology Institute planned to provide land and facilities for the university. He also said the institute’s leading professors and scientists would help out at the university.

Deputy Prime Minister Nhan asked the Ministry of Education and Training to appoint a French chancellor to head the university.

By the middle of January, the Ministry of Education and Training and the Science and Technology Institute plan to establish a management board to run the university. The university’s main campus will occupy an area of 90ha in the city’s Hoa Lac High-technology Area.