A study and job fair opened on November 3 in Ho Chi Minh City,offering a chance for Vietnamese students to explore information onstudy and employment in Japan.

The 2013 JapanOsaka Study and Job Fair, part of activities to celebrate the 40thanniversary of the Vietnam-Japan diplomatic ties, draw the participationof 25 businesses and 18 education establishments from Japan’s Osakaprefecture.

Nakano Eriko, head of the culturaland information section of the Japanese Consulate General in the city,said over recent years, Vietnam has been an attractive destinationfor Japanese investors.

Economic relations betweenthe two countries have also been developed robustly, she said, addingthe number of enterprises joining the Japanese Business Association inHo Chi Minh City has increased to 660.

Vietnam takes the lead in Southeast Asia in the number of students in Japan, with 4,400 students.

The number of Japanese language learners has also risen, with morethan 10,000 taking part in Japanese speaking contests every year in thecity, she noted.

Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi MinhCity People’s Committee Hua Ngoc Thuan said Japan is now one ofthe city’s five largest foreign investors, its third largest tradepartner and top tourism market.

Ho Chi Minh Cityand Osaka have signed a number of cooperation agreements since2007, facilitating delegation exchanges and investment and tradepromotion and cooperation activities between the two sides, especiallyin human resources and water treatment, he said.

The two sides are focusing their cooperation on education and personnel training, he added.

A series of activities will be organised as part of the event, including a music show and an eloquence contest.

Osaka is the second largest economic hub of Japan after Tokyo. The locality is considered an ideal education centre with 380universities.-VNA