Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - The Association of Francophone Universities(AUF) on September 27 opened two employment support centres in Hanoi and Ho ChiMinh City, with the aim of connecting students with job opportunities, increasetheir integration into the labour market and encourage their start-up spirit.

One centre – named the Centre d'employabilité francophone (CEF) in French - isbased in Hanoi University, while the other is based in the southern branch of theVietnam Academy of Social Sciences in HCM City.

The two centres will have projects relating to consultation, job-seekingsupport, soft-skills training, occupational certification and start-ups.

Jean-Marc Lavest, Director of AUF Asia and Pacific, said that in May 2020 theAUF launched a global poll. Feedback was received from more than 15,000 stateagencies, university managers, lecturers and students, from over 75 countries.

This feedback helped the AUF and its partners to develop training roadmaps forthe francophone university, allowing them to address real-world issues, hesaid.

The feedback showed that student integration into the labour market was one ofthe top concerns in Asian countries, he said.

Nguyen Thi Cuc Phuong, vice-principal of Hanoi University, said that the CEF inHanoi aimed to help secondary school students to select suitable courses toattend in university.

In addition, the centre expected to equip university students with thenecessary skills to integrate into the labour market confidently and moreeasily, she said.

Truong Huy, a student of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, HCMCity National University, said that, with the support of the CEF, he hoped thatVietnamese students could access more job opportunities in both Vietnam andfrancophone countries.

There are eight CEFs in the Asia- Pacific region, including the two newlyopened centres in Vietnam; Cambodia, China, Laos, Mongolia, Thailand andVanuatu each has one.

A total of 69 CEFs across the world are connected with each other through anintegrated platform that provides distance learning programmes and sharesevents and best practices in the field of employment support for students.

This is also a place to share educational resources, creating optimalconditions to connect schools and businesses./.