Sharing knowledge and experience between Australia and Vietnam to strengthen our innovation systems
Over the last year, the Aus4Innovation Program has strengthened connections between Australia and Vietnam and delivered real impact.
This flagship program under the Australia-Vietnam Innovation Partnership sets both countries up for future collaboration as we face new challenges and opportunities together.
This showcase of our projects and people demonstrates the impact that the program has achieved over the past two years.
A university commercialisation model by University of Technology Sydney – the Rapido – has been transferred to leading universities in Vietnam. The project is demonstrated via two tech-transfer sub-projects, including an automated water filtration system in the Red River Delta to filter arsenic in ground water. The technology has been picked up by a local company for commercial-scaled production.
A sub-project of University of Technology Sydney with Ho Chi Minh University of Technology (HCMUT). The two universities adapted water monitoring technology from UTS to a uniquely Vietnamese version. Four monitoring stations were successfully built in Phu Yen province, providing real-time warning on sea water quality, help lobster farmers take prompt actions to protect their investment. The technology is now ready to replicate replication to other provinces, especially in the South Central region.
The program is closely administered by a steering committee that consists of representatives from the donor (Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade) the implementer (CSIRO), the strategic partner (Minister of Science and Technology), and a representative from local private sector.
A4I fosters partnerships between research institutes and businesses to deliver benefits for local communities.
Using silicon carbide sensor technology transferred from Griffith University, the Saigon High Tech Park Labs is developing a wireless sensor system for flood monitoring. This project will deploy a low-power sensor network in Ho Chi Minh City, where local people’s live is heavily affected by floods, to provide real-time flood monitoring and early warnings via a phone app. The solution is expected to be scaled to other provinces that are experiencing similar urban city challenges.
Every year, the Australian – Vietnam Innovation Partnership meeting takes place, chaired by the Australian Ambassador and Vietnam’s Minister of Science and Technology. During the meeting, achievements of Aus4Innovation program to date are discussed, as well as the plan for next year. So far, 43 partnerships have been established and enhanced, engaging 130 partners from both Australia and Vietnam.
GRAFT Vietnam is a challenge-led acceleration program focused on attracting innovators with the most promising paths to addressing the region’s agribusiness hurdles at scale. This project is the first-of-its-kind with a scale-up and market entry program to empower the agri-tech entrepreneurs of Mekong.
VIETRAD is an example of Australian and Vietnamese organisations coming together to innovate. This project improves breast cancer diagnosis on mammograms of radiologists in Vietnam with VIETRAD platforms, powered by machine learning tech, developed and tailored for Vietnamese clinicians based on the success of BREAST program in Australia. By now, 200 technicians and radiologists from 25 hospital across Vietnam have improved their mammogram reading skills thanks to VIETRAD training.
Can Tho University and local government are monitoring water quality to reduce pollution and health risks in the Mekong Delta with the support of training and mentoring from Aus4Innovation’s Science Commercialisation Partnerships Team.
Aus4Innovation is supporting researchers in commercialising a nano fertiliser product that helps plants adapt to drought stress. Developed by Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, this fertiliser also releases nutrients slowly and ensure plants use during growth, reduces the use of chemicals that cause soil depletion and pollution. It saves 30% of water and 70% of fertiliser cost.
Aus4Innovation is helping researchers of Can Tho University build accurate, automated shrimp processing technology for Mekong Delta, country’s most important shrimp farming region. An automatic mechanism and electronic sensor system mimic processing by hand would minimize waste, save time and labour.
Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, supported by science commercialisation training, is using rice husk and biofilm as an environmentally friendly solution to remove oil and other pollutants from industrial wastewater and for environmental clean-up.
Aus4Innovation is supporting researchers from Vietnam National University of Agriculture (VNUA) in introducing an Australia potato variety – Bliss – for chip making in Vietnam. They have successfully produced seedlings from seeds of Bliss, with equivalent level of quality as imported seeds, and a 25 to 30 per cent lower price.
Australia’s University of Sunshine Coast (USC) and Research Institute for Aquaculture No. 3 (RIA3) are now the proud parents of 20,000 white teat fish sea cucumbers – spawned artificially for the first time using a hormone developed by USC. Sea cucumber is a nutritious delicacy and a valuable commodity on the world market. With this achievement, it is expected that a new potential farming industry is opened up for coastal farmers, and help improve their income.
The circular economy model named COAMpigF developed by Vietnam Climate Innovation Center (VCIC) is supported by Aus4Innovation to reduce waste from pig farming and create local products and opportunities.
The AQUAM project develops an environmental monitoring system that includes a suite of mangrove aquaculture health indicators, which will guide sustainable management of mangrove-aquaculture. Mangrove aquaculture systems provide multiple products and ecosystem services such as support of fisheries, biodiversity, carbon sequestration, coastal protection and resilience to climate change.
Catfish processing by-products represent 60 to 70 per cent of the fish biomass. The Western Sydney University has worked with the Research Centre for Aquafeed Nutrition and Fishery Post-harvest Technology, and industry partners to introduce a modern technology to improve value-added product from catfish processing by-products, such as fishmeal or oils/proteinaceous fractions. Given the Vietnamese catfish industry in the Mekong Delta region accounts for the production of ~1.42 M tons in recent years, has generated an export income of more than US$1.77 billion, and has employed more than 200,000 rural poor people (predominantly women), the innovative solution is expected to produce economic and environmental impacts.
Vietnam National University of Agriculture and fruit companies are using commercialisation training and partnership brokering skills from Aus4Innovation to bring novel fruit processing technology to industry. This technology makes use of fruit peel to make natural additives for jam and juice.
The project builds on established partnerships to show how farmers in Son La province can use innovative CoolBot technology to create low-cost cool chains that deliver certified safe-to-eat vegetables to Hanoi retail markets in peak condition, removing a major roadblock to scaling and increasing farmer income by up to 30 per cent.
CSIRO has been testing multiple approaches to partnering between research and business. Aus4Innovation launched an innovation club to support horticulture in the north, creating a platform to bring together SMEs, researchers and others together to address unprecedented challenges like climate change and COVID-19.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a priority of Aus4Innovation in the transition period to second phase. With AI’s numerous possible applications, healthcare with the complexity and rise of data is not an exception. From wellness to diagnostics to operational technologies, AI can have the potential to transform many aspects of patient care.
Aus4Innovation is funding a study to develop a set of economic models to assess the impacts of technology creation and adoption efforts on productivity and GDP growth in Vietnam.
Ninety-five water filtration systems were donated to schools, kindergartens, clinics and poor households in 8 communes of Quang Binh and Quang Tri provinces, who were affected by the historic flood in Central Vietnam in October 2020. This was possible thanks to UTS project’s quick action by re-designing the water filtration systems to turn flood water into safe drinking water.
CSIRO’s Data61, the leading data and digital specialist in Australia, and Ministry of Science and Technology developed a report that examines the trends affecting the development of Vietnam’s digital economy until 2045 and identifies four possible future scenarios for the country.
CSIRO has developed a 9-step guideline on science commercialisation, the Commercialisation PLUS guide, tailored to Vietnamese context. This guide provides a detailed step-by-step process to ensure commercialisation results can be applied into real life.
Sponsored by Aus4Innovation, the RESET 1010 Hackathon offered an opportunity for anyone with a creative AI solution in strategic sectors for Vietnam’s future socioeconomic development. Three winners were awarded a financial prize and the chance to take part in an incubation program by Aus4Innovation to continue implementation of their ideas.
The Commercialisation PLUS Guide has been being applied in Aus4Innovation intensive trainings for scientists from several universities and institutes in Vietnam for 18 months. These scientists have now become first trainers on science commercialisation in Vietnam. Till date, 250 people from 21 research institutes and universities have been trained, among which 181 people were trained by the first trainer cohort.
