On July 30 2018 at the Meeting Hall of the Dien Bien Department of Education and Training, a workshop was conducted to expand the project on “Improving the communication on sexual and reproductive health for high school students in the mountainous areas of Dien Bien province” in 2018.

Participating in the workshop were Mr. Pham Dung, MCNV’s Vietnam Country Director, Mr. Mai Van Tien, Head of the International Cooperation Unit, Department of External Relations, Dien Bien province, Mr. Nguyen Manh Quan, Deputy Director of Dien Bien Department of Education and Training, and representatives of the High School Department, Head Masters and Youth Union’s Secretaries of two boarding schools for ethnic minority students in Dien Bien city and Eastern Dien Bien district.

Mr. Pham Dung, MCNV’s Vietnam Country Director and Mr. Nguyen Manh Quan, Deputy Director of Dien Bien Department of Education and Training were signing into the contract to expand the project.

Mr. Pham Dung, MCNV’s Vietnam Country Director and Mr. Nguyen Manh Quan, Deputy Director of Dien Bien Department of Education and Training were signing into the contract to expand the project.

As in the plan to expand the project, MCNV will support the two boarding schools for ethnic minority students in Dien Bien city and Eastern Dien Bien district with EUR 7,000 to improve the communication on sexual and reproductive health for high school students in the mountainous areas of Dien Bien province in 2018, between July 2018 and October 2018.

The main purpose of the expansion is after the project ends, about 900 students at ages 15 to 19 will be equipped with better knowledge, awareness and behaviors about sexual and reproductive health. At least 60 high school teachers will have better knowledge and skills to communicate and teach their students about this issue.

Mr. Quoc Anh, MCNV’s Program Coordinator explained about the expansion of the project.

(Dien Bien Department of Education and Training)

On August 6, 2018, at the Vietnam People’s Aid Coordinating Committee (PACCOM), PACCOM’s representatives awarded the working license to MCNV Vietnam. The license will be valid until February 4, 2023.

Last week, after a period of extensive discussions, the Supervisory Board of MCNV and Guus Paardekooper, General Director, have decided to end their collaboration. A difference of opinion on the MCNV policy for the coming years and more specific on its strategy and timing are at the root of this decision.

Since October 2017, MCNV has started to implement the project “Development of Speech and Language Therapy Education in Vietnam”, for 5 years from October 2017 to September 2022. This is a component project under the DISTINCT Project by VietHealth, with fund from USAID. The goal of the Project is to establish a solid foundation for development of an official education system of Speech and Language Therapy (SALT) profession in Vietnam.

The University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh city (UMP) and Da Nang University of Medical Technology and Pharmacy (DUMTP) participate in this project as implementing partners to MCNV.  Trinh Foundation Australia (TFA) participates in this Project to coordinate participation of Australian SALT lecturers from different Australian universities as a technical consultation partner to MCNV.

In two days of October 2nd and 3rd 2018 in Da Nang, MCNV and Da Nang UMTP co-organized the Workshop “Developing curriculum for a Bachelor of Rehabilitation Techniques with Specialization in Speech and Language Therapy” with technical consultancy from Sydney University from Australia. This is the first activity of cooperation between MCNV and Da Nang UMTP to aim at developing a training curriculum and implementing a regular training course in Bachelor of Rehabilitation with specialization in speech and language therapy.

Participants of the Workshop were national and international specialists, educators, managers from health care education universities and the Ministry of Health.

The objective of the Workshop was to develop a Vietnamese contextualized curriculum for a Bachelor of Rehabilitation Techniques with Specialization in Speech and Language Therapy..

In the Workshop,  a draft of a training framework and curriculum for speech and language therapist at bachelor level was developed and commented. After this Workshop, MCNV and related counterparts will continue working together to finalize the documents and make them available and ready for application in the coming 2019 – 2020 school year in Da Nang UMTP.

On November 16^th 2018, the celebration of the MCNV’s 50^th anniversary took place at the International Convention Center, Hanoi. Participating in the event were about 150 guests representing a wide range of Vietnamese institutions and partners.

1968 – 2018 marks 50 years of MCNV

Founded in Amsterdam in November 1968 as one of many Dutch solidarity movements, MCNV managed to change with the times, turn into an international NGO and remain relevant to the Dutch-Vietnamese relations and cooperations and of importance for the Vietnamese and Laotian people. Read more for a link to the livestream.

On December 1^st 2018, MCNV in collaboration with Hai Duong Medical Technical University (HMTU) organized a workshop on “Reviewing the Bachelor of Occupational Therapy (BOT) education program and job placement for BOT students”. Participating in the workshop were representatives of the Department of Rehabilitation of the MoH’s Administration of Medical Services, rehabilitation hospitals and centers from around 12 Northern provinces and cities, faculties of HMTU, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Ho Chi Minh City (UMPH) and Manipal Academic of Higher Education (MAHE), expatriate OT volunteers and HMTU’s OT students. The workshop aimed at reviewing the OT Education Program which is undertaken at HMTU and UMPH in 2017 and 2018.

The workshop has also been an opportunity for MCNV and HMTU to exchange with leaders of relevant rehabilitation centers about the coordination in job placement and creating favorable conditions for BOT students to practice OT services after completing their training.

As of November 2018, the Manipal Academic of Higher Education has for six times sent OT trainers to assist OT courses for 57 BOT students at the HMTU and UMPH. These courses have also been supported in terms of clinical supervision from expatriate volunteers from Japan, Denmark and Australia. In May 2019, as planned, the pilot BOT training program in HMTU will finish with 36 graduates, and by July 2020, 21 more BOT students of regular courses will graduate from the UMPH.

Tireless efforts of MCNV and the Centre for Rehabilitation and Social Inclusion for Children with Disabilities in Cao Bang province was presented in the moving and heart-touching 30 minute documentary film “We can go to school”, which was broadcast at the Life Portrait Program, VTV4 Channel.

For full program, please click here.

For program trailer, please click here.

Program with English subtitle, please click here.

After being broadcast, a large number of friends and colleagues called to congratulate MCNV for this meaningful film. Efforts in a decade to support children with disabilities in Cao Bang were finally recorded and presented to the whole public. These are true honour and also responsibility of MCNV’s staff to continue striving for the community-based rehabilitation work in Vietnam.

On March 5, 2018, Hanoi University of Public Health (HUPH) hosted a welcome event for 10 Master of Public Health students newly arrived from the University of Health Sciences in Laos (UHS). The group is the first batch to participate in the dual-degree, two-year MPH programme shared by the two universities, which encompasses studies in both Laos and Vietnam.