In the morning of September 12, 2012, in Hanoi took place the Workshop on sharing practical experience on the implementation of Vietnam – Finland Innovation Partnership Program (IPP). Participating in the Workshop was Finnish Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Vietnam Kimmo Lahdevirta; ex-Chief Advisor of IPP Project Hannu Kokko; Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Tran Viet Thanh; Director of IPP Project Tran Quoc Thang together with some representatives of some Ministries, branches, enterprise and a lot of scientists.

According to the overall report on the implementation status of IPP Project, over the past 3-year implementation, IPP Program Stage I (2009 - 2012) has raised awareness on the importance of innovation for the development of enterprises and promotion of linkages among S&T organizations, universities and enterprises. In addition, the Program has strengthened training, improving S&T management capacities, technology renovation capacities for enterprises. So far 61 sub-projects under 4 components have been approved. The sub-projects have been allocated according to fields including training (12), information technology (14), engineering mechanics (10), clean technologies (8), biology technology (5), society (3), and other fields (9). The Workshop has been presented with experience sharing after 3-year implementation of the Project of ex-Chief Advisor of IPP project as well as those of some representatives from sub-projects under different sectors of private enterprises, universities and administrative agencies … Delivering a speech in the Workshop, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Tran Viet Thanh said that although initial results have been achieved IPP Program has also faced with some difficulties over the past time as that ideas of innovation are still new, awareness on roles of innovation for the survival of enterprise is not enough, difficulties in financial mechanisms for enterprises carrying out technologies … The Deputy Minister emphasized that the next stage of IPP would consider enterprises as centers for using technology renovation and improving the legal environment to promote S&T innovation and use. The Innovation Partnership Program (IPP) is one development program between the Governments of Vietnam and Finland. The IPP’s overall objective is to contribute supporting Vietnam to become a middle-income industrial nation with the knowledge based economy and national innovation systems, which actively support the social and economic development. IPP is designed including 4 main components of Improving the legal framework on S&T and institutional environment; Increasing capacities and management capacities on S&T and R&D at central and local levels; Strengthening linking efficiencies between R&D and market, between scientists and enterprises, promoting technology renovation in enterprises; and Strengthening S&T partnership relations between Vietnam and Finland. Stage 1 of IPP was from August 2009 to August 2013. IPP’s executive agency is Vietnam’s MOST and Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The IPP total budget for Stage 1 is 6.918 million Euro, including 89% contribution from Finnish Government and 11% contribution from Vietnamese Government. The IPP implementation process has been provided with technical assistance by Finnish Niras Consulting Company with the budget allocated for technical assistance of about 2.3 million Euro.