The Italy-Viet Nam Textile Technology Centre opened at the HCM City University of Technology in HCM City on November 29. — VNS
The Italy-Viet Nam Textile Technology Centre was set up at the HCM City University of Technology on November 29 to support training and research in textile technology.
It is an Italian-funded joint project between the university and the Italian Trade Agency with technical support from the Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers and the International Polytechnic for Industrial and Economic Development.
Prof Dr Vu Dinh Thanh, rector of the university, said the centre is equipped with Italian machinery and equipment, while Vietnamese lecturers and engineers have been trained by Italian experts.
The centre would be a reliable place for training and supplying manpower for Vietnamese and Italian textile-garment businesses, he said.
“With the Italy-Vietnam Textile Technology Centre, Vietnamese textile-garment enterprises will be able access advanced technology and interact with professors and researchers from Italian universities.”
Nguyen Phuong Dong, deputy director of the HCM City Department of Industry and Trade, said the garment and textile sector has developed strongly with exports topping US$21.4 billion in the first 10 months of the year, a year-on-year increase of 9 per cent.
But the sector faces challenges like a reliance on imported materials and a lack of qualified designers and workers who can handle technology, he said.
“With active support from a global leading in the garment and textile sector, the centre would help train skilled human resources and improve design capacity, boosting the country’s textile-garment industry and making it globally competitive,” he said.
Paolo Lemma, chief representative of the ITA in Viet Nam, said: “Viet Nam is a promising market with many opportunities for Italian enterprises in textile and apparel, leather and footwear, tanning, agriculture, and infrastructure.
“Viet Nam has advantages in terms of human resources, economic conditions and an open market, and the two sides can help each other.
“I believe that if the two countries’ enterprises strengthen their information exchange and co-operation, bilateral trade will increase steadily.”
Italy is now the 18th biggest export market for Viet Nam. — VNS