Doan Thanh Tung, a young businessman, will represent Vietnam at the Australia-ASEAN Emerging Leaders Programme 2018 (A2ELP) that will take place in Australia for three months from early March. 

 

Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop on January 12 announced the list of 15 young leaders from Australia and ten ASEAN countries for A2ELP and their participation in the historic ASEAN-Australia Special Summit in Sydney, an important event to reinforce the strategic partnership between Australia and ASEAN. 

 

Doan Thanh Tung is Director of the Lighthouse Social Enterprise, a Hanoi-based business offering healthcare and counseling services for men who have sex with men and transgender (MSM-TG) community in Vietnam. 

 

A2ELP is an initiative of the Australia-ASEAN Council (AAC), which was launched in 2015 and is designed to enhance engagement between Australia and Southeast Asia. It brings together social innovators who have founded enterprises to address critical challenges facing the region including the environment, agricultural production, education, health and ageing populations. 

 

Participants will travel to Melbourne and Sydney for a ten-day programme, where they will take part in a range of workshops, site visits, master classes, peer learning sessions and networking events. 

 

Through these events, they will explore the role of businesses in driving social change, enhance their understanding of the risks and potential of social ventures, and learn techniques to develop their enterprises and maximise their impact.-VNA/VNP