The Japanese ambassador to Việt Nam Ito Naoki (centre) pays a visit to Đà Nẵng-Đông Á University's Japanese language study department. Photo courtesy of Quang Vinh

ĐÀ NẴNG — The Japanese ambassador to Việt Nam Ito Naoki has paid a visit to two universities in the city – the Đông Á-Đà Nẵng University and Foreign Language University – aiming to encourage further Japanese language study.

Vice Rector of Đông Á University, Dr Ngô Quang Vinh said the visit by the Japanese diplomat would help in the promotion of the Japanese language at the university and the other education centres in Đà Nẵng.

Vinh, who has spent nearly 30 years working with the Japanese language, said the ambassador had been very supportive during his working visit to the university.

A working session of the Japanese ambassador to Việt Nam Ito Naoki and the managing board of Đà Nẵng City's Foreign Language University. Photo courtesy of Quang Vinh

He said the ambassador also passed on messages on how to develop the Japanese language network in central Việt Nam from the Japanese Embassy, the Consulate General of Japan in Đà Nẵng and the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry. 

Vinh asked that cultural exchanges between Japan and Việt Nam and in particular Đà Nẵng, needed to be expanded, along with increasing exposure to Japanese cinema and music to encourage students to learn the language.

The promotion of the Japanese language and an increasing number of learners would help create a stable pool of high-quality human resources for the two countries in the near future, Vinh said. 

He added Đông Á University alone enrolls around 800 Japanese language students every year from Đà Nẵng and the Central Highlands.

Local students in Đà Nẵng join a practical session on a nursing course at the Japanese-standard lab. Photo courtesy of Phương Chi

Rector of Đà Nẵng Foreign Language University, Nguyễn Văn Long, strongly committed to increasing the number of students learning the Japanese language and post-graduate students studying in Japan.

The first Japanese language studies and culture research faculty in the central and Central Highlands region was established at the Đà Nẵng-Đông Á University in 2020. 

At least nine cities in Japan and more than 80 businesses have signed agreements to recruit students from the university and the region to work or study in Japan. 

Đà Nẵng has hosted an annual Japan-Việt Nam Cultural Festival since 2014.

More than 162,000 Vietnamese students currently study the Japanese language, while 40,000 students have joined training courses in Japan. VNS