Vietnam - US share experience in urban construction and development

On September 25^th, 2024, at the headquarters of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) in Washington DC, US, Vietnamese Minister of Construction Nguyen Thanh Nghi and the delegation of the Ministry of Construction had a working session with Mr. Solomon Greene, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy Development and Research at the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

Minister Nguyen Thanh Nghi worked with Mr. Solomon Greene, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy Development and Research at the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

At the meeting, Minister Nguyen Thanh Nghi shared Vietnam's policies on social housing development and apartment renovation, as well as its experiences in responding to climate change as well as disaster and disease prevention. The two sides exchanged experiences and policy solutions related to housing and urban development in their respective country.

 Minister of Construction Nguyen Thanh Nghi presented a souvenir to Mr. Solomon Greene (Photo: Kieu Trang/VNA)

HUD shared the challenges facing the US administration in ensuring access to housing and homeownership for its citizens, affirming that the policy of housing in general, and that for low-incomers in particular, plays a crucial role in the development of the US society.

To mitigate the impacts of climate change, the locations for developing residential areas are carefully selected. HUD maintains the assessment and mapping of flood-prone areas and disaster risks, and updates them periodically to provide warnings to local authorities.

Additionally, HUD has also launched an 800 million USD programme to renovate existing infrastructure, enhance energy efficiency, and reduce energy loss, helping to lower energy costs for users.

Minister Nguyen Thanh Nghi and the delegation took a photo with Mr. Solomon Greene, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary and members of HUD (photo: Kieu Trang/VNA).

Through the discussion, the two sides highly appreciated the potential for cooperation and agreed to jointly research and concretize cooperation programs in the coming time.

During the working program in the United States, Minister Nguyen Thanh Nghi and the Ministry's delegation met and worked with Autodesk - a famous software company in design and technical data management, founded in 1982 in California, currently has an office in Brooklyn Navy Yard, New York. The company provides CAD (Computer-Aided Design), CAM (Computer-Aided Manufacturing) and CAE (Computer-Aided Engineering) software solutions, including software used to design and manage products in the fields of construction, architecture, manufacturing, and communications.

Autodesk has also been contributing to bring new technologies to design and manufacture; pioneering the use of cloud computing and Internet connectivity in its products, allowing users to access and manage their data from anywhere and on any device.

Minister Nguyen Thanh Nghi worked with famous software company in design and technical data management (Autodesk).

At the meeting, Minister Nguyen Thanh Nghi thanked Autodesk for taking the time to meet and work with the Ministry of Construction. After introducing the state management function and reviewing some of the important achievements and contributions of the Ministry of Construction in the socio-economic development of Vietnam, Minister Nguyen Thanh Nghi emphasized the importance of digital transformation in the construction industry to keep up with the 4.0 Industrial Revolution. In particular, Building Information Modeling (BIM) played an extremely important role.

To create a legal foundation for the application of BIM in projects using state capital, the Prime Minister has approved and assigned the Ministry of Construction to preside the implementation of the BIM application project. Relevant policies have been integrating into the Construction Law, Decrees and Circulars to support BIM implementation.

Minister Nguyen Thanh Nghi and the delegation took a photo with Autodesk.

Autodesk shared its experience on issues related to the application of Building Information Modeling (BIM) and digital technology solutions in housing and urban development, especially the application of BIM in infrastructure and housing construction projects in major cities of Vietnam, helping projects to be saved time and cost.

At the end of the meeting, Minister Nguyen Thanh Nghi and Autodesk representative hoped that the two sides would soon sign a cooperation agreement in the field of construction and urban development.