Singapore (VNA) – Vietnam and Singapore have bolsted cooperation in leadership development and public governance as the third course of the Potential Leaders’ Programme for Vietnamese officials is taking place in Singapore from July 14 to 18.

The programme is designed to facilitate the exchange of advanced knowledge and practical governance insights from Singapore, while fostering mutual understanding and further deepening the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the two nations.

The Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, the Temasek Foundation, and the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics officially launched the course on July 14.

At the opening ceremony, Huynh Thanh Dat, deputy head of the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Information, Education, and Mass Mobilisation, highlighted that the programme offers a valuable opportunity for participants to gain exposure to Singapore’s best practices in national governance, economic development, digital transformation, and technology application. Beyond academic enrichment, the initiative contributes to building mutual trust and strengthening bilateral ties. Through interactive sessions with Singaporean leaders, academics, and experts, along with site visits, participants are expected to gain a deeper and more holistic understanding of Singapore’s development trajectory.

Ong Toon Hui, Vice Dean and Executive Director of the Institute for Governance and Leadership (IGL) at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, said the programme aims to build trust and advance the comprehensive strategic partnership between Singapore and Vietnam by sharing insights into how Singapore addresses national development challenges, while exploring opportunities for collaboration to more effectively tackle these issues together in the future.

She said following the formal upgrade of their relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in March 2025, Vietnam and Singapore have continued to deepen cooperation across key areas. Singapore remains a top economic partner for Vietnam, with total registered investment capital reaching approximately 84.14 billion USD from 3,951 projects as of January 2025, primarily in manufacturing, real estate, and energy. Bilateral trade stood at 6.57 billion SGD (5.12 billion USD) in the first two months of 2025, marking a 27% year-on-year increase.

The Vietnam–Singapore Industrial Park (VSIP) network has grown to 20 parks across 14 provinces and cities, drawing nearly 1,000 projects and creating close to 300,000 jobs. These industrial parks are now transitioning to the VSIP 2.0 model, focusing on high-tech and green development, in line with the two countries’ Digital–Green Economic Partnership.

Security and defence cooperation is a high priority. The 2022 defence cooperation agreement continues to underpin practical engagements such as policy dialogue, naval and air force collaboration, search and rescue missions, officer training, young officer exchanges, and joint efforts to combat transnational crimes and cybersecurity threats.

In transportation, Singapore remains an important aviation hub for Vietnam. Commercial air services have been fully restored, with over 150,000 Singaporean visitors arriving in Vietnam and more than 310,000 Vietnamese traveling to Singapore by 2025 - contributing significantly to tourism and economic links.

Notably, the partnership between the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics and the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy stands as a model of high-level training cooperation. This collaboration was further reinforced with the signing of a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in March 2025.

The MoU prioritises the training of senior and strategic-level off♒icials, focusing on policy development, public administration, and Singapore’s holistic development experiences. It also promotes academic exchange, joi𝔍nt policy research, and the development of a high-caliber workforce./.