International Training Workshop on Food Biotechnology Communication, Media Relations and Multi-sectoral Collaboration

Goals of the workshop were to enhance the communication capacity and efficiency of government officials, scientist community and health experts in field of food and agricultural biotechnology, working withtraditional and social media; improve the awareness of media about food safety, Agro-science and related technologies including biotechnology, and to create user-friendly communication materials.

The participants were scientists, officers from provincial departments of Science and Technology, research organizations, universities, enterprises and media agencies.

In the opening ceremony, Mrs. Bui Thi Huy Hop – VISTIP’s deputy director had emphasized the main goal of this workshop was to tighten the collaboration between stakeholders in order to improve the interaction efficiency of media agencies and experts in the theme of biotechnology applied in agriculture and foods. She hoped to hold thisworkshop annually, promoting science and technology collaboration and forming linkages between scientists of both countries. In the same line, Mr. David B. Schmidt, president and CEO of IFIC Foundation, in his speech, had dedicated the IFIC Foundation’s commitments to support the Vietnam development of science and technology, especially in the field of biotechnology, foods and food safety where his organization has strong expertise in.

In the frame of the 2 days workshop, IFIC Foundation and VISTIP’s experts, with speakers from Southern Mississippi University (Prof. Dr. Steven Venette); University of California Riverside (Prof. Dr. Alan McHughen); WHO (Mrs. Helen Yu, senior communication consultant); Agricultural Genetics Institute (Prof. Dr. Le Huy Ham), People Newspaper (MSc. Reporter Phan Huy Thang) and the participants had share common interests, concerns related to communication on science and biotechnology, foods safety, especially products made by achievements of biotechnology. All participants enthusiastically joined in the simulated exercises including provincial government officials, researchers working in research institutions and lecturers in universities. All factors combined had made a successful workshop.

After the event, Deputy Minister of MOST Mr. Tran Quoc Khanh met the IFIC Foundation delegation and professors, experts who contributed in the workshop’s success, at the MOST’s head office in the afternoon of Oct 16th 2015. In the meeting, Mr. Andrew Philip Benson – vice president of IFIC Foundation, in charge of international relations, on behalf of the delegation reported to the Minister about the results of the 2 days workshop and collaboration proposed by IFIC and VISTIP aimed to contribute in enhancing capacity of Vietnamese scientists community serving well the science and technology integration of Vietnam. He highly appreciated the efforts of VISTIP and IFIC Foundation as well as of in-country and international professors, including experts from highly reputed universities in the United States, W.H.O, Agricultural Genetics Institute, People Newspapers. Vice minister Tran Quoc Khanh requested both VISTIP and IFIC Foundation actively develop a long term and definitive e collaboration plan and carry out similar events in the future to help the science and technology integration of Vietnam.