Senior Vietnamese Delegation Visited Portland, Oregon

Picture: Professor Dr. Le Huu Nghia, Director of Ho Chi Minh National Academy
of Politics and Public Administration at the reception

Senior Vietnamese delegation from the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics and Public Administration led by Professor Dr. Le Huu Nghia, Director, on the Academy and also a Member of the Vietnam Communist Party Central Committee and Vice President of the Central Theoretical Council visited Portland, Oregon and Portland State University's Hatfield School of Government on March 26-27. 2008.

Picture: From left, Dr. Gil Latz, Portland State University's Vice Provost for International Affairs, Professor Marcus Ingle, Director for International Public Service at the Mark O. Hatfield School of Government's Executive Leadership Institute , Shpresa Halimi and Chris Runckel, President of Runckel & Associates and Chairman of the U.S. Vietnam Chamber of Commerce (UVCC)

This was the Academy's second visit to Portland State University and represented the highest level visit of a Vietnamese official to the State of Oregon in recent memory. Professor Dr. Le Huu Nghia and his team met with the Mark O. Hatfield School of Government to discuss possible collaboration to rewrite much of the current curriculum offered by the Academy and to make it more in tune with modern concepts such as sustainability and other concepts not as much utilized in Vietnam as elsewhere. As the highlight of the visit, Runckel & Associates and the U.S. Vietnam Chamber of Commerce worked with Portland State University to fund a reception for members of the Academy and others in the Pacific Northwest involved in Vietnam.

Represented were government leaders, business executives from many Portland and Southern Washington State companies. Increasingly Oregon and Washington State companies are becoming aware of business opportunities in Vietnam both for manufacturing and for retail and non-retail sales into the country.