Viet Nam, U.S. sign five-year health cooperation agreement
VGP - The U.S. and Viet Nam have signed a five-year health cooperation agreement aimed at helping Viet Nam strengthen self-reliance in HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis control while enhancing its capacity to detect and respond to emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases.
The signing ceremony between Minister of Health Dao Hong Lan and U.S. Ambassador Jennifer Wicks, Ha Noi, September 11, 2026
The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), signed under the Trump Administration's America First Global Health Strategy, will support Viet Nam's efforts to strengthen its health system and gradually assume greater ownership of its health programs.
Under the agreement, the U.S. plans to provide nearly US$100 million in global health assistance, subject to coordination with and approval by the U.S. Congress.
The cooperation will follow a co-investment model, under which the two countries will work together to sustain achievements in disease prevention and control, strengthen Viet Nam's health system and improve its capacity to respond to public health threats.
The new partnership builds on more than two decades of U.S.-Viet Nam cooperation in disease prevention, treatment and health-system development. Since 2004, U.S. global health assistance to Viet Nam has totaled more than US$930 million.
The partnership will focus on sustaining gains in HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis control, while strengthening Viet Nam's disease surveillance and response capacity to address emerging and re-emerging infectious disease threats.
U.S. officials noted that enhanced disease surveillance and response capacity in Viet Nam would also help reduce the risk of infectious diseases spreading across borders, contributing to regional and global health security.
The agreement is expected to usher in a new five-year phase of health cooperation between the two countries, with Viet Nam taking a greater role in financing and sustaining its health programs through domestic resources.
Under Viet Nam's Law on Disease Prevention and the National Target Program on Population and Health, the country is working to increase domestic investment in healthcare and strengthen self-reliance in the health sector.
Both sides said a stronger and more resilient health system would not only help save lives and protect public health but also support Viet Nam's economic development and contribute to closer economic and security cooperation under the Viet Nam-U.S. Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
The new agreement reaffirms the two countries' commitment to a substantive and sustainable health partnership, contributing to a healthier, safer and more prosperous future for the people of both countries./.