The University of Liverpool has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City (UMP HCMC), committing to long term collaboration and joint research in data science and AI innovation for healthcare.
The MoU was signed by Professor Iain Buchan, Associate Pro Vice Chancellor for Innovation and Director of the Civic Health Innovation Labs at the University of Liverpool, and Associate Professor Ngo Quoc Dat, President of UMP HCMC.
The signing ceremony took place at the UK-Vietnam Digital Health Transformation Conference with more than 200 policymakers, senior health experts, and industry leaders from the UK and Vietnam in attendance.
The ceremony formed part of the UK Health Innovation Mission to Ho Chi Minh City, a key phase of the multi‑year HCMC Health Innovation Development Project, jointly organised by the British Embassy in Hanoi and the British Consulate‑General in Ho Chi Minh City.
The newly signed MoU establishes a long‑term framework for collaboration between the University and UMP HCMC. Areas of cooperation include:
- Exchange of scientific and technical knowledge
- Joint research projects in public health, digital health, and biomedical informatics
- Faculty and administrative staff exchanges
- Graduate‑level student exchange
- Opportunities for visiting fee‑paying students
- Additional innovation activities of mutual interest
The agreement also includes provisions for shared publication of research findings, intellectual property guidelines, and annual joint reviews of collaborative progress.
Professor Iain Buchan said: "The University of Liverpool is delighted to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with The University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Ho Chi Minh City to collaborate in data science and artificial intelligence innovation for healthcare. Our universities are civic partners in two city regions that are quite different in geography but similar in our alignment of AI and health-tech innovation to address pressures in our healthcare systems. We share global health challenges that require innovation in how we use data and technology to make healthcare resources go further - particularly in preventing disease and targeting resources to the most vulnerable in society, who have increasingly complex needs as people live longer with multiple conditions.
"CHIL's work in AI for infection resilience, mental health, medicines and health systems optimisation will form the basis of training resources and twinned innovation projects. CHIL's CHI-Zone HealthTech Design Studio approach will be shaped with UMP colleagues for the people of HCMC. We look forward to many years of fruitful collaboration."
Gary Leeming, Deputy Director of the Civic Health Innovation Labs at the University of Liverpool, was present for the ceremony and commented: "The University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Ho Chi Minh City is a nationally leading institution and digitally leading hospital. This MoU is the start of collaboration with Liverpool that will extend across research, education and knowledge exchange to build a partnership combining expertise and rapidly growing digital health expertise across both countries."
The visit also saw University of Liverpool experts meet with companies and government representatives to develop relationships between the Liverpool City region and Ho Chi Minh City and develop a working plan for collaboration with the University of Medicine and Pharmacy Ho Chi Minh City.
Founded in 1947, UMP HCMC is a leading centre of medical education, research, and clinical practice in Vietnam and Southeast Asia. Its affiliated University Medical Center (UMC) pioneered the country's first 'Hospital-University' model and has earned international recognition for clinical excellence and innovation.
Based at the University of Liverpool, CHIL applies data‑driven research and innovation to improve public health, health systems resilience, and civic wellbeing. The Labs collaborate globally across academia, healthcare, and industry.
The signing of the MOU followed an initial trade mission in March 2025, when Professor Iain Buchan from CHIL and Gary Leeming from CDC joined colleagues from Alder Hey Children's Hospital, the University of Oxford's Nuffield Department of Medicine, and the LCR Combined Authority in a strategic delegation to HCMC. That visit, funded by the Department of Business and Trade's Economic Partnerships Fund, focused on sharing UK expertise in digital health, big data, and workforce development, and set the stage for a long-term City2City partnership.
