THE FIRST MEETING BETWEEN THE AGENCY FOR SOUTHERN AFFAIRS OF MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (ASA) AND THE SEOUL CITY DEPARTMENT OF TRADE (SBA)

The Cooperation Program between the Agency For Southern Affairs (ASA) and the Seoul Startup Hub (SSH, initiated in 2019) was established to promote the development of technological potential in the startup sector, which based on the innovation in the Southern region. In 2020, the ASA has proactively proposed to further expand this Cooperation Program in its depth and object of interest (to SME sector). To realize this proposal, the cooperation process in 2019 has been discussed and re-evaluated, and the agreement between the ASA and the Seoul Business Agency (SBA, agency of SSH) has been made to expand this Cooperation Program.

Vietnam - Korea enterprises exchanged technology information during a working session at Quang Trung Software Park organized by ASA-MOST in August 201

In the context of the complicated situation of the COVID epidemic - 19, the plan to hold a joint meeting was continuously delayed, although the two sides agreed that the first meeting between ASA and SBA was needed to kick off the second phase of the Program in 2020. On the afternoon of April 17, 2020, the two sides held the first session in multi-point online form between the bridgeheads in Ho Chi Minh City and Seoul. At the meeting, SBA’s representative is Mr. Lee Tae Hoon, Head of Startup Support Department, said that in 2019, the two sides had initially recorded successful cooperation results, Vietnam - Korea businesses had cooperating to establish 9 legal entities and 2 joint ventures in the fields of tourism, education, insurance, food... With the support of ASA (MOST), SSH has achieved the purpose of promoting cooperation with government agencies in Vietnam, expanding search and support for startups, enabling Korean startup to enter the Vietnamese market.

The two sides exchanged discussed the plan for the year 2020 of support packages, activities to look for startups that have many advantages to receive technology transfer from South Korea, support training, training, and revenue, attract investment... promote establishment of Vietnam - Korea joint venture legal entity. The two sides also discussed business support options: co-working space, meeting rooms, and communication support in both Ho Chi Minh City and Seoul.

In order to facilitate the activities of the Program to increase efficiency, increase continuity and especially to easily expand the areas of access, the ASA has proactively proposed building an Internet-based platform supports online activities such as online connection (e-matching), online exchange (e-meeting, online technology stall (e-showroom), online training ...

The conclusion of the meeting of both sides agreed to expand the 2019 Program to a new stage to expand not only start-ups but also SME enterprises. Develop tools to support program activities (build Platform, expected to open in May 2020); The two sides will support businesses in the coworking space during the actual survey, with Vietnamese businesses will receive free workspace support for up to one month at SSH Korea, in contrast to Customs enterprises will come to Vietnam to organize to create favorable conditions for working space in Ho Chi Minh City.

In general evaluation of the online meeting, Mr. Lee Tae Hoon, the leader of SBA, affirmed that his result exceeded his expectations before the meeting. On the ASA side, Mr. Nguyen Manh Cuong, the leader of the group, affirmed that in addition to the efforts towards the common goal of 2020, the early acquisition of a Platform as a powerful tool to support the operation was a victory. The two sides pledged to strive towards the new success of the Program.