From this event, May 18 was chosen as Vietnam Science, Technology and Innovation Day to honor intellectuals, scientists, businesses and creative achievements. This day also conveys the message: The future development of the country must go by knowledge, technology and high-quality labor force.
The Resolution of the 14th Party Congress set out the requirement: "Take science, technology, innovation and digital transformation as the main driving forces". At the same time, "Urgently and drastically innovate and improve mechanisms and policies for developing science, technology, and key industries in accordance with market principles, international standards and practices; improve mechanisms and policies to be superior and suitable to the specific characteristics of creative labor".
Resolutions 57, 71 of the Politburo also emphasize the role of science, technology and innovation. In which, Resolution 71-NQ/TW on breakthrough development of education and training sets out a very clear requirement: higher education must go beyond the role of imparting ordinary knowledge to become a center of research, innovation, entrepreneurship, providing high-quality human resources and talents for key industries and fields.
The higher education system, especially Hanoi National University, needs to carry a larger mission than the framework of a higher education institution. It must be a place to converge, discover, nurture and develop talents; a "nucleus of knowledge" of the nation; an environment for new ideas to be tested, major studies to be formed, and young talents to be led far away.
A country that wants innovation cannot lack strong research universities. Businesses can commercialize products, the State can build institutions, but universities are places that produce foundational knowledge, train people and create long-term autonomy. If there are no strong knowledge centers, innovation is very easy to stop at a movement; if there is a lack of elite human resources, major strategies are very difficult to go into substance.
To do so, universities today need to be given enough space to be creative, sufficiently open mechanisms to attract talents, sufficiently strong resources to compete internationally and sufficiently large responsibilities to serve the country.
Vietnam Science, Technology and Innovation Day is also a day to ask again about the role of universities in the national destiny. When knowledge becomes the most important development resource, leading universities must become places to ignite aspirations, nurture scientific bravery, build a team of elite human resources and lead society into an era of development based on creativity.
Nurturing talent today is preparing national competitiveness for tomorrow. In that mission, the Vietnamese higher education system is highly expected to be a place to give rise to great ideas, great projects and great people for the country.
