Technology, innovation, and football: Catalan president seeks agreements and collaboration in Asia

Catalan president Salvador Illa attended the signing of a collaboration agreement in Hanoi over the weekend between Catalonia's Trade & Enterprise agency and the National Innovation Centre of Vietnam.

The dela aims at allowing large companies from both countries to collaborate on technology and innovation.

The agreement aims to connect the "innovation ecosystems" of both places and promote cooperation between academic institutions, R&D centres, and industries and technology companies.

It will also allow Catalan companies to learn about the technological challenges of large Vietnamese corporations and vice versa, and will enable the immersion of emerging companies with acceleration programs.

The agreement is established in some priority sectors such as health, food, audiovisual and video games, mobility and energy, among others.

This meeting is part of a series of visits by the president to Catalan companies operating in this country, before he heads to Singapore. 

Football

On Monday, Illa explored possible collaborations on football training in Vietnam after meeting with his Deputy Prime Minister, Pham Gia Tuc, at the headquarters of the Vietnamese government.

"We have been asked to explore collaborations and we will work on it with the Sports Minister on our return to Barcelona," he said in a media briefing in Hanoi.

The head of the executive offered Catalonia's experience in managing sustainable tourism, and thanked the Catalan companies established in the territory for their support.

Pham Gia Tuc holds one of the 19 positions on the Politburo of the Communist Party of Vietnam, and is responsible for directing key sectors of the country's economic, industrial, and commercial policy.

Chamber of Commerce agreement

The Barcelona Chamber of Commerce and its counterpart in Vietnam signed an agreement on Monday to promote the internationalization of companies, bilateral trade, and investments.

The memorandum was signed in Hanoi by the president of the Catalan organization, Josep Santacreu, and the vice president of the Vietnamese organization, Nguyen Quang Vinh, in the presence of Salvador Illa.

The agreement will allow the two chambers to cooperate to strengthen economic ties between both parties, through the exchange of information and the organization of trade missions and business conferences.

In statements to the media, Santacreu explained that the chambers and the executive will help study a direct flight with Barcelona.