The Program was coordinated by VNU with the participation of Power Engineering Consulting Company 1 (PECC 1), Hanoi University of Mining and Geology, Norwegian Geotechnical Institute (NGI) and Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate (NVE).

VNU President Nguyễn Kim Sơn attended and delivered a speech at the meeting.

Program (Phase II) “Capacity building and technology transfer for mitigation of geohazards in Vietnam in the context of climate change” synthesized the research documents on geohazards in the areas surrounding the hydro-power plants of Song Tranh 2, Son La (Son La province) and Ha Giang province with a focus on the mountainous districts – the localities with a high probability of geohazards.

At the meeting, Prof.Dr. Mai Trọng Nhuận and Dr. Rajinder Bhasin – NGI expert, presented the final report on Phase II research results.

Through Phase II research activities, nearly 400 staff members have been trained. About 90 young staff members were trained through “on-the-job training” or “learning-by-doing”, 14 master students and 8 PhD students were supported by the program. A total of 15 experts were sent to Norway for scientific research exchange and training.

Speaking at the meeting, VNU President Nguyễn Kim Sơn said that according to the World Bank, Vietnam was assessed to be one of the five most vulnerable countries to the global climate change and highly affected by geo-hazards such as floods, landslides, earthquakes, coastal erosion and the subsidence occurring in various parts of the country. In such a context, VNU cooperated with the Norwegian Geotechnical Institute to set up the program “Capacity Building and Technology Transfer for Mitigation of Geo-hazards in Vietnam in the Context of Climate Change” under the sponsorship of the Royal Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Highly appreciating the support of the Norwegian Government as well as the great efforts of leading scientists of Vietnam and Norway, VNU President Nguyễn Kim Sơn stated that after five years of implementation, the program had successfully fulfilled its objectives of building capacity for Vietnamese experts in the area of geohazard mitigation as well as proposing and transferring methodologies and models for mitigation of geo-hazards in Vietnam. Besides, the program has created a good basis for the formulation of a Master Program in “Geo-environment and geo-hazards” in cooperation with the University of Oslo and the establishment of a VNU Key Lab on “Geo-environment and Climate Change Responses”.

Norwegian Ambassador to Vietnam Siren Gjerme Eriksen said that Norway was very interested in joining hands with Vietnam in addressing environmental challenges, ecological imbalances, pollution, global warming, accompanied by extreme weather conditions and sea level rise…

Expressing her belief in the effectiveness of cooperation with VNU and Vietnamese partners in this field, the Ambassador said that researchers from the two countries had contributed to improving the quality of forecasts for unusual weather events and minimizing the impact of geological hazards, thereby strengthening the capacity of young Vietnamese scientists - future generations of the country.