Leaders of Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology Receive Delegation from the French Ministry of Economy and Finance

Overview of the working session

Joining the French delegation were four representatives from French agencies, including Mr. Denis Le Fers - Director General of BPI France Assurance Export; Mr. Emmanuel Baudran - Deputy Director of the Department for Sustainable Development Solutions, French Development Agency (AFD); Mr. Jean-Alexandre Egea - Economic Counsellor, Embassy of France in Vietnam; and Ms. Le Phuong Thao - Economic Attaché, Embassy of France in Vietnam.

On the VAST side, participants included Prof. Acad. Le Truong Giang -Vice President of VAST; Dr. Bui Trong Tuyen – Director of Planning and Finance Department; Dr. Ngo Duy Tan - Deputy General Director of Vietnam National Space Center; and Dr. Nguyen Hoang Duong - Deputy Director of the Department of International Cooperation.

Prof. Acad. Le Truong Giang - Vice President of VAST, and Mr. Armel Castets - Deputy Director of the Department for International Corporate Finance and Foreign Trade Support, at the meeting

During the meeting, both sides discussed the proposal for ODA financing for the VNREDSat-2 project, as well as the project’s implementation schedule and operational modalities. Mr. Armel Castets, Deputy Director of Department for International Corporate Finance and Foreign Trade Support, noted that this is a major financing proposal with a 100% concessional rate, which is unprecedented.

Vice President Le Truong Giang highly appreciated the technology and capabilities of French partners, noting that on the occasion of the French President’s visit to Vietnam last May, VAST, together with Airbus and CNES, signed and exchanged a Declaration of Intent (DOI) on cooperation in the field of Earth observation satellite development. This signing demonstrates the readiness of all parties to expand collaboration in developing a new generation of satellites for Vietnam, including technology solutions, human resource training, and applications for sustainable development.

Vice President Le Truong Giang expressed his hope that the French side would continue to provide financial support that meets the preferential calculation criteria of Vietnam’s Ministry of Finance, thereby facilitating the advancement of cooperation on the VNREDSat-2 satellite project in the near future.

Mr. Armel Castets commended the achievements of cooperation between the two sides in recent years, particularly their joint efforts to promote the VNREDSat-2 satellite project. He expressed confidence that both parties would soon reach a consensus on financial arrangements and other technical matters related to the VNREDSat-2 and future satellite projects, leading to positive outcomes.

Commemorative photo session

Translated by Phuong Ha
Link to Vietnamese version