Asia-Africa International Forum 2025: Identifying challenges, enhancing resilience
WVR - The Asia-Africa International Forum 2025 is not just an academic space, but also promotes strategic cooperation mechanisms, helping the two continents enhance resilience against global challenges.
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| Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ta Minh Tuan, Vice President of the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences, delivers a welcome speech at the Forum. (Source: ISAWAAS) |
On the afternoon of September 9, over 100 Vietnamese and international delegates gathered at the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences to attend the first Asia-Africa International Forum (AAIF 2025) themed “Adapting to Global Challenges in a New Context”.
Organized by the Institute for South Asian, West Asian, and African Studies (under the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences), AAIF 2025 coincides with the 70th anniversary of the Bandung Conference (1955) – an event marking the formation of the Asia-Africa solidarity spirit and affirming the position of developing countries in the international order post-Cold War.
In his welcome speech, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ta Minh Tuan, Vice President of the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences, emphasized that with a population accounting for more than half of humanity, abundant resources, and ancient cultures, Asia and Africa have immense potential to become significant drivers of global growth and innovation. However, this potential can only be fully realized if our nations collaborate, adapt to challenges, and seize opportunities in the new era.
Welcoming the initiative of the Institute for South Asian, West Asian, and African Studies to organize the Forum amidst escalating global challenges, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ta Minh Tuan hopes AAIF 2025 will achieve fruitful outcomes, providing valuable scientific arguments and policy recommendations, and sustainably and effectively enhancing Asia-Africa cooperation.
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| Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Xuan Trung, Director of the Institute for South Asian, West Asian, and African Studies, delivers the opening speech at the Forum. (Source: ISAWAAS) |
In his opening speech, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Xuan Trung, Director of the Institute for South Asian, West Asian, and African Studies, highlighted the central issue: how Asian and African countries can adapt to the new global context while proactively contributing to shaping a fair, inclusive, and sustainable international order.
To "identify the approach", AAIF 2025 serves as a forum for experts, scholars, diplomats, and policymakers from Asia and Africa to exchange academic insights, policies, share experiences, propose solutions, and foster solidarity, friendship, and practical, effective cooperation between the two continents.
| AAIF 2025 is a significant academic initiative aimed at promoting dialogue, sharing experiences, and seeking multilateral cooperation solutions among Asian and African countries as well as with the international community. |
According to Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Xuan Trung, inclusive multilateralism and South-South cooperation have become strategic methods for developing countries to maintain autonomy and enhance response capabilities.
Meanwhile, the position and potential of Asia and Africa share many similarities. Asia is currently a leading growth driver, accounting for over 40% of global GDP. Africa is the youngest continent, rich in resources and market potential, with rapid urbanization and digital transformation. Both regions play crucial roles in maritime routes, supply chains, and the global economic-security order...
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| Dr. Diana Sfetlana Stoica, Political Expert at the Ubuntu Center for African Studies, Timisoara, presents at the Asia-Africa International Forum 2025, September 9, 2025. (Source: ISAWAAS) |
The Forum gathered many scholars and international experts both in-person and online, including: Dr. Diana Sfetlana Stoica (Ubuntu Center for African Studies, Romania), Prof. Tomoomi Mori (Setsunan University, Japan), Dr. Philani Mthembu (Executive Director of the Institute for Global Dialogue, South Africa), Prof. Alvin Ang (Center for Strategic and Policy Studies, Brunei)...
Speakers from various perspectives shared the consensus that the world is entering the second decade of the 21st century with profound and complex changes. Crises not only follow one another but also overlap. Yet, amidst these challenges, the Asia-Africa region is emerging as a new driver of global growth and transformation, thanks to its young population, abundant resources, and increasing intra-regional demand.
Presentations focused on identifying prominent challenges in the two continents, from climate change and health security to traditional and non-traditional security instability, while analyzing the potential for cooperation and experience sharing to enhance national resilience.
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| Speakers at the roundtable discussion. (Source: ISAWAAS) |
The roundtable discussion, moderated by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Dinh Cong Hoang, Head of Middle East and West Asia Studies, Institute for South Asian, West Asian, and African Studies, featured participation from the Ambassadors of India, South Africa, Saudi Arabia, UAE to Vietnam, and Ambassador Nguyen Phuong Nga, former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, former President of the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organizations, along with many expert scholars.
Vietnamese and international diplomats agreed on the need to strengthen economic linkages, effectively leverage trade agreements like AfCFTA in Africa and RCEP in Asia; build Asia-Africa trade corridors, both in physical and digital infrastructure; and promote scientific-technological cooperation, education, and multilateral institutional reform to ensure the voices of developing countries are heard.
Some delegates emphasized the necessity of institutionalizing the Asia-Africa Forum into an annual mechanism, with a Secretariat and specialized working groups, to turn political declarations into concrete actions.
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| Delegates attending the Asia-Africa International Forum 2025. (Source: ISAWAAS) |
| Vietnam is regarded as a positive bridge in Asia-Africa relations. The country has established diplomatic relations with all 55 African countries and the African Union (AU), and has become an observer of the AU. Since the mid-1990s, Vietnam has collaborated with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and Africa under the South-South and tripartite cooperation model to transfer agricultural development and poverty reduction techniques to Africa (Senegal, Mozambique, South Sudan, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Mali, Namibia, Guinea, Benin, Congo...). Among these, the Vietnam-FAO-Senegal tripartite cooperation model is considered exemplary. Additionally, Vietnam actively participates in UN peacekeeping forces in South Sudan, the Central African Republic, and Abyei. Vietnam is ready to share its experiences in agricultural development, poverty reduction, digital transformation, and international integration with Asia-Africa friends. This is a testament to the spirit of cooperation, responsibility, and contribution to the common development of humanity. |
