The International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group, signed an agreement with two Vietnamese architectural universities on Tuesay to help them improve training quality and create skilled architects and engineers for the development of green construction in Viet Nam.

The Ha Noi University of Architecture and University of Architecture of HCM City were the two universities.

A three-day course, which began yesterday to train teachers on bioclimatic and resource-efficient design, has been created to match global standards and offer international experience as well as a local context, he added.

The course is expected to equip over 200 young engineers and architects every year with green building design skills.

Increasing energy efficiency results in higher economic efficiency, reduction of scarcity of energy resources and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions associated with energy consumption, Martin Maier, Switzerland’s consul general in HCM City, said.

The programme provides practical responses to the challenges of Viet Nam’s rising population and economy, such as environmental degradation, inefficient use of energy due to outdated technologies and other negative effects of rapid urbanisation and industrialisation, he said.