HANOI, March 19, 2015 -- The U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Assistant Administrator for Asia, Jonathan Stivers, will visit Vietnam from March 19 - 21. During the visit, Mr. Stivers will observe a signing of a statement of cooperation with the Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology to expand the partnership between the United States and Vietnam in the science and technology area.

In Hanoi, Mr. Stivers will deliver opening remarks at a USAID-supported workshop organized with the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry on participation of the business community in regulatory reform. He will then meet with Ministry of Justice leaders to discuss development cooperation on strengthening the rule of law and advancing inclusive growth in Vietnam. He will meet with Mr. Vuong Dinh Hue, Chairman of the Communist Party of Vietnam’s Central Committee's Economic Commission, to discuss the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and USAID assistance. He will talk with civil society representatives to better understand local capacity development needs. Mr. Stivers will also visit the Nguyen Dinh Chieu Primary and Lower Secondary School to review inclusive education opportunities for children with disabilities supported by USAID.

While in Ho Chi Minh City, Mr. Stivers will join representatives of several leading Vietnamese and international organizations at a roundtable meeting to discuss environment, climate change, food security and wildlife trafficking issues. He will meet with leaders of Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology where he will deliver a keynote speech to faculty and students highlighting USAID’s key priorities in development assistance in Asia in general and in Vietnam in the areas of higher education and science and technology. With AmCham Board of Governors, he will discuss USAID’s support for the Vietnam Trade Facilitation Alliance to help advance Vietnam’s competitiveness through policy and technical assistance to Vietnam’s customs authorities and relevant trade facilitation agencies. The Alliance is a private sector-led alliance recently established with support from USAID and its partners.

Mr. Stivers will spend a day in Long An, where he will meet with farmers, agricultural extension agents, and representative of the private company Ecofarm, a partner of USAID’s Forests and Deltas Program.

USAID Assistant Administrator for Asia Jonathan Stivers’ visit to Vietnam will take place as the United States and Vietnam are celebrating the 20th anniversary of the normalization of relations between the two countries. Under USAID’s Country Development Cooperation Strategy for Vietnam (2014 - 2018), the agency is working to strengthen the new U.S.-Vietnam Comprehensive Partnership and address fundamental development challenges in order to support Vietnam’s continued transformation into a responsible, more inclusive partner with a market-based economy.