Nhan Dan - In Ho Chi MInh City, Vietnamese researchers and scientists have received the good news that the Ministry of Science and Technology has launched the Vietnam Research and Education Network (VINAREN) nationwide. VINAREN connects 50 leading research and training establishments in Vietnam with an information highway.

A specific network for research and training activities

The exploitation and sharing of information via PC network has become an important information and document collection work. Globally and in Vietnam in particular, some Internet-based information networks have been formed. However, due to overloading and limited speed, the internet failed to meet requirements of users. Over the past years, thanks to the promotion of international co-operation, the State has invested VND 80 billion in building a network for research and training activities. VINAREN, which is a giant information highway, allows users to get fast access and download a huge amount of information.

Dr Ta Ba Hung, director of the National Centre for Scientific and Technological Information and managing director of the Europe-Asia Information Network (TEIN2), said that VINAREN was connected with TEIN2 with a 45 Mbps connection, creating a high speed connection environment for Vietnamese scientists and researchers to exchange experience and ideas with their foreign colleagues. Vietnamese scientists through VINAREN will have opportunities to take an active part in scientific cooperation programmes both regionally and globally, for example in participating in the initiative Program on Electronic Transmission of Very-Long-Baseline Interferometry (e-VLBI), and natural disaster warning systems.

At present, Vietnam has seven operating centres in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Can Tho, and Hue. The centres are run by the National Centre for Scientific and Technological Information. Three centres in Hanoi, Da Nang and Ho Chi Minh City form a national backbone network for VINAREN.

VINAREN serves research and development organisations, universities, hospitals, scientific and technological enterprises, centres for scientific and technological information, capable of sharing resources for research and training activities, as well as organisations and agencies which will promote the development of a nationwide research and training environment.

Master Cao Minh Kiem, deputy director of the National Centre for Scientific and Technological Information, said that the centre planned to share information on the basis of agreements between the centre and members of VINAREN, observing copyright and sharing rights.

Apart from traditional and non-online information sources, the centre has a valuable online library with a database of Vietnamese science and technology; research results and reports on Vietnamese and foreign scientific and technological researches. To enrich information shared on VINAREN, the centre will propose the network members to share their information and resources. The members have their ownership rights to their shared resources and rights to rules on the sharing and providing information.

Benefits from participating in VINAREN

On the launch day, VINAREN helped the organisation of a successful video conference among Hanoi, Da Nang, Can Tho and Australia. In Hanoi, in the Central Hospital of Paediatrics, Associate Professor and Dr Nguyen Thanh Liem, director the hospital, shared initial results in treatment services for children via VINAREN. Before joining VINAREN, the hospital had exchanged information with other medical centres and hospitals in Vietnam and foreign countries via emails or post mails, resulting in time-consuming delays.

Participating in VINAREN, doctors from the hospital now can exchange information with world class experts. This is particularly helpful for them when having difficult emergency cases. The hospital has co-operated with Japanese hospitals in treating avian influenza and encephalitis.

In addition, VINAREN has helped improve the quality of meteorological forecast of the Central Centre for Hydro-meteorological Forecast.

The launch of VINAREN has made a contribution to linking education and training to production and business activities, affirming the important position of scientific and technological research and training in particular in the industrialisation and modernisation process in Vietnam. 

Ha Hong