Academy of Public Administration and Governance concludes the fourth run of the Modern and Effective National Governance Programme for Emerging Leaders (MENGPEL) (2025-2026)

Attending the ceremony were Mr. Ho Wei Jiang, Dean of the Chandler Academy of Governance; Mr. Jean-François Verdier, Inspector General of Finance of the French Republic, course tutor; Ms. Wee Teng Ong, Program Manager in Singapore, Chandler Academy of Governance; and Ms. Dinh Dieu Linh, Program Manager in Vietnam, Chandler Academy of Governance.

On the side of the Academy of Public Administration and Governance, included Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Ba Chien, President of the Academy; representatives of leaders from functional units; and 15 trainees who are leadership and managerial officials from ministries, sectors, localities, state-owned enterprises, and the Academy.

The Modern and Effective National Governance Programme for Emerging Leaders (MENGPEL), Cohort 4 (2025-2026), co-organized by the Academy of Public Administration and Governance and the Chandler Academy of Governance, recorded 100% of trainees (15/15) completing the program and qualifying for certification. The course gathers a diverse cohort of trainees ranging from provincial, departmental, and division-level leaders and state-owned enterprise executives to professional talent pools, creating favorable conditions for knowledge sharing and approaching multi-dimensional development governance issues. The program includes four modules combining theory and practical field studies in Vietnam (Hung Yen, Ninh Binh) and Singapore, with over 85% of the duration delivered by international experts.

Training content focused on reinforcing four core competency clusters: strategic and systems thinking; policy formulation, analysis, and execution organization; leadership, executive management, and collaborative governance capacity; alongside adaptability to digital transformation, innovation, and international governance environments. Through case study exercises, most notably the evaluation of the tourism development strategy of Ninh Binh Province, trainees honed methodologies in defining considerations, resource allocation, and auditing policy risks. Post-course surveys demonstrated absolute satisfaction (100%), with 96% of trainees rating the practical applicability of the program to their actual work highly. From the success of this course, the report drew key lessons learned: training programs must align closely with practical challenges, absorbing international experience must ensure institutional compatibility, leverage advantages from trainee diversity, and establish mechanisms to evaluate post-training application effectiveness.

For the Academy of Public Administration and Governance, the course results and organizational experience serve as the foundation to continuously refine training content and methods, develop case studies and teaching materials grounded in Vietnam's practical context, and strengthen linkages between training activities, scientific research, and international cooperation.

At the closing ceremony, representing the course trainees, Ms. Nguyen Thi Anh Thi, Vice Chairwoman of the People's Committee of Da Nang City, affirmed that the course systems provided thinking methodologies, multi-dimensional policy analysis, and evidence-based evaluation, helping trainees enhance their capacity to resolve complex inter-sectoral management challenges in practice. Through field surveys in Singapore and the strategic analysis exercise on Ninh Binh tourism, trainees gained a clear appreciation of the vital importance of institutional quality, organizational capacity, risk assessment, and inter-sectoral coordination over sole reliance on financial resources or technology. Multi-perspective knowledge sharing among trainees from central agencies, localities, enterprises, and research institutes also generated practical interactive value.

On behalf of all trainees, the class representative expressed deep gratitude to the Academy of Public Administration and Governance, the Chandler Academy of Governance, along with partner training institutions and the dedicated team of domestic and international experts and lecturers. Simultaneously, trainees affirmed they will apply the accumulated methodologies flexibly and effectively to practical management and executive work.

Speaking at the closing ceremony, representing the Chandler Institute of Governance, Mr. Ho Wei Jiang, Dean of the Chandler Academy of Governance, congratulated the 15 trainees on successfully completing the course. Against the backdrop of major transformations in Vietnam's public administration, such as administrative restructuring, provincial mergers, and management decentralization, Mr. Ho Wei Jiang highly commended the commitment, agility, and proactivity of the trainees. Across four modules, the program equipped in-depth knowledge of strategic thinking, collaborative governance, institution building, and systems thinking, while emphasizing practical application through case studies in Singapore and Ninh Binh. Furthermore, Mr. Ho Wei Jiang highlights the value of multi-dimensional connectivity, encouraging leaders to maintain inter-sectoral collaboration to address complex governance challenges.

Mr. Ho Wei Jiang expressed deep gratitude to the leadership of the Academy of Public Administration and Governance, the Department of Science Management and International Cooperation, and the dedicated team of speakers and international experts who have accompanied the four MENGPEL cohorts since 2022. He wished trainees great success in effectively applying their acquired knowledge to advance Vietnam's public service system.

Delivering closing remarks at the ceremony for the 2025-2026 Training Course on "Enhancing Leadership and Management Capacity to Meet the Requirements of Modern and Effective National Governance," Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Ba Chien, President of the Academy of Public Administration and Governance, emphasized the imperative to leadership elevate and management capacity as Vietnam accelerates institutional reform, administrative restructuring, two-tier local government operations, decentralization, delegation of power, digital transformation, and innovation. Reform effectiveness depends not only on refining institutions but demands execution capacity, strategic thinking, resource mobilization ability, coordination, and result-oriented accountability.

Evaluating the program, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Ba Chien affirmed that the training course successfully combined leadership and management knowledge with international governance experience through components in Vietnam and study-survey modules in Singapore. Content covering adaptive leadership, policy formulation and execution, collaborative governance, human resources, digital transformation, and innovation helped trainees enhance analytical and problem-solving capacities and apply knowledge to Vietnam's realities. Notably, the final course exercise evaluating Ninh Binh Province's tourism development strategy highlights the critical importance of aligning objectives with resources, implementation responsibilities, considerations, and long-term policy impacts.

The President of the Academy commended the trainees' serious learning spirit and affirmed that course outcomes serve as a foundation for the Academy to continuously innovate training content and methods, while expanding collaboration with the Chandler Academy of Governance in training, research, and developing governance case studies grounded in Vietnam's practical context. He expressed confidence that trainees will effectively apply acquired knowledge, skills, and methodologies, contributing to elevating leadership, governance quality, and task execution effectiveness across agencies, localities, and enterprises.

The training course reaffirms the orientation of the Academy of Public Administration and Governance toward expanding international cooperation and innovating training activities by linking theory with practice, contributing to developing a cadre of leadership and managerial officials equipped with modern mindsets, execution capabilities, and readiness to meet national governance requirements in the new era.