Global Opportunity Program of the University of Tasmania

The University Global Opportunity Program (UniGO) of the University of Tasmania's (UTAS, Australia) was a study tour and experience program that helped Australian students explore lands, cultures, technology and sustainability in the development of countries. In 2024, the UniGO program of the University of Tasmania would be held in 3 countries including Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam, in which the internship group studying at VNUA included 21 students of different majors such as agricultural economics, agriculture, finance, and law, etc. The delegation led by Dr. Cherie Hawkins with the support of Mr. Dam The Quyen of the Australian Volunteer Organization in Vietnam. The Department of Quantitative Analysis, Faculty of Economics and Rural Development, was the unit that supports and coordinates program activities at the Vietnam National University of Agriculture (VNUA) and a number of localities in the country.

UniGO delegation from the University of Tasmania visits VNUA campus and experiences street food at VNUA

UTAS students in a football match with students of the Faculty of Economics and Rural Development, VNUA

The learning experience program of the UniGO UTAS delegation from January 16 to January 19, 2024 included lectures on food processing and distribution activities in Vietnam, traditional Vietnamese dishes cooking acitivities, visits to supermarket systems and food stores in new urban areas such as Vinhomes Ocean Park, Ecopark, and visits to food production and supply models in Ba Vi district, Hanoi.

UTAS UniGO delegation listens to a lecture about the food processing and supply system in Vietnam at the Faculty of Economics and Rural Development, VNUA

UTAS UniGO delegation participats in the Food lab to experience making traditional Vietnamese dishes at the Faculty of Food Technology, VNUA

On January 16, 2024, UTAS students and students of the Faculty of Economics and Rural Development, VNUA, had a trip to explore VNUA’s campus and street foods in the area surrounding the university. On January 17, 2024, the delegation listened and discussed 03 lectures on Food Distribution System Management (presented by Dr. Dong Dao Dung, Faculty of Accounting and Business Management), Food Retail System and food safety issues (presented by Dr. Nguyen Thi Thu Huyen, Faculty of Economics and Rural Development) and Overview of food processing technology in Vietnam (presented by Dr. Vu Quynh Huong, Faculty of Food Technology). Through presentations and extensive discussions, UTAS students gathered a lot of information and better understood the food processing and supply system in Vietnam. After that, the group also had hands-on experiences in preparing traditional Vietnamese dishes at the Faculty of Food Technology. The UTAS student and lecturer delegation were very interested in traditional Vietnamese dishes and affirmed that they would make these dishes at home when returning to Australia.

UniGO delegation visits and learns about food supply activities at Trau Quy Market

UniGO delegation visits and learns about the system of stores and supermarkets providing food in Ecopark Urban Area, Hung Yen province

On January 18-19, 2024, UTAS's UniGO delegation visited food retail systems from traditional markets in Trau Quy Town, Gia Lam district, Hanoi city and modern retail systems at Vinhomes Ocean Park 1 and Ecopark. The delegation also visited and learned about agricultural production and processing models in Ba Vi district, Hanoi city.

UniGO delegation visits VietGAP tea production and processing model in Ba Trai commune, Ba Vi district, Hanoi

UniGO delegation visits the dairy farming model and production of cow's milk products at Nong Trang Xanh Cooperative, Van Hoa commune, Ba Vi district, Hanoi

UniGO delegation exchanges and learns about the activities of Nong Trang Xanh Cooperative, and discusses the cow's milk market in Vietnam and the cooperative's development strategy

Study tour and research activities in Vietnam helped UTAS to students gain a lot of practical knowledge about food supply activities in developing countries like Vietnam, along with a lot of knowledge and understanding of Vietnamese culture and landscape. This was also one of the first training cooperation activities between the University of Tasmania and VNUA on the basis of the Memorandum of Understanding between the two parties, opening up many new opportunities for future cooperation between the two prestigious universities of the two countries.