Delegates at the forum (Photo: VNA)  

Nearly 200 international delegates, including scholars, policymakers and experts from across Asia and Africa, alongside representatives of international organisations gathered at a forum in Hanoi to explore ways of promoting regional cooperation in the face of global challenges.

The Asia–Africa International Forum, the first of its kind, was held under the theme “Adapting to global challenges in the new context” by the Institute for South Asian, West Asian and African Studies under the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences (VASS) on September 9.

Associate Professor Dr Ta Minh Tuan, VASS Vice President, stressed that the world is facing mounting challenges ranging from climate change, energy and food security, and pandemics, to economic and geopolitical instability. These, he said, require a multilateral approach grounded in shared responsibility and collective action. He highlighted the historical solidarity between Asia and Africa, dating back to the Bandung Conference in 1955, as a foundation for advancing common values of independence, equality, cooperation and peace to pursue sustainable and stable development.

Associate Professor Dr Nguyen Xuan Trung, Director of Institute for South Asian, West Asian and African Studies, said Asia and Africa should step up economic and trade linkages, make greater use of regional cooperation mechanisms, and develop both physical and digital connectivity corridors. He also called for stronger collaboration among businesses, innovation ecosystems and value chains.

Expanding cooperation in science, technology and education would be key, he added, through networks for research in renewable energy, agriculture, healthcare and digital transformation, as well as scholarships, student exchanges and vocational training to build a workforce suited to the digital age.

He further proposed reforming global governance systems to ensure developing countries’ voices are better represented, and institutionalising the Asia–Africa Forum as an annual mechanism linking research with practical cooperation.

Doctor in politics Diana Sfetlana Stoica from Romania’s Ubuntu Centre for African Studies said youth mobility between Asia and Africa should not be viewed merely as an issue of migration or education, but as an opportunity to expand economic, cultural and social cooperation. Young people, she noted, have the potential to serve as new bridges between communities and drivers of creative development.

She also introduced a cooperation model, which links the two regions through four main actors: governments, the private sector, academia and youth communities. This approach, she said, allows for more comprehensive and practical cooperation beyond education and migration, extending to sustainable development, people-to-people diplomacy and knowledge exchange.

Crucially, she emphasised, partnerships should shift from solely government-driven to people- and community-centred, with youth placed at the heart of future cooperation.

Delegates noted that Vietnam’s ties with Asian and African partners have expanded and deepened in recent years, covering trade, investment, education and cultural exchange. Vietnam is increasingly recognised as a bridge-builder, able to contribute to advancing multilateral cooperation and putting forward practical initiatives to promote equitable and mutually beneficial partnerships./.