Facebook and VIA launch 'Instagram Academy' to support young Vietnamese businesses
Facebook and VIA launch 'Instagram Academy' to support young Vietnamese businesses
Facebook has partnered with the Vietnam Internet Association (VIA) to officially launch the online training series Instagram Academy on Monday in an effort to support young Vietnamese people with knowledge to start their business online. 
Featuring an interesting and completely free training curriculum under Instagram’s design consultation, Instagram Academy aims to provide 200 aspiring youngsters aged 18-35 with tools, knowledge, skills, as well as the confidence and endurability needed to pursue their entrepreneurial dream.
“We once again thank Facebook for the trust in the Vietnam Internet Association (VIA) and hope that the "Instagram Academy" programme will contribute to promoting the application and promoting the "digital economy" in Viet Nam. Through the “Instagram Academy programme” in collaboration with Facebook, we expect to contribute to the widespread digital transformation in Viet Nam, helping small and medium businesses and individuals find and maintain business opportunities on Facebook's compelling Instagram platform,” said VIA vice chairman and general secretary Vu The Binh.
The programme includes four online training sessions, 60 minutes per session, at 9am every Saturday, starting from August 28 to September 18, 2021. Recruited participants will be added to the Facebook Group “Instagram Academy”, where they can directly discuss, respond to questions and compete with each other throughout the programme. Training sessions will also be a great opportunity for the instructor and participants to interact, share new updates and answer questions. The videos for all sessions will then be uploaded to the programme’s official website at https://igacademy.via.org.vn/ to extend the knowledge to the community.
“Instagram Academy marks the very first long-term partnership between Facebook and VIA. We are proud to accompany VIA in activities promoting the Internet community and bringing practical benefits for the young businesses and talents of the nation. I hope the participants of Instagram Academy will not only gain valuable knowledge, but also have a chance to engage and exchange experiences with peer entrepreneurs, thus realising the positive development for their own businesses,” said Nguyen Phuong Chi, Acting Head of Public Policy, Vietnam, Facebook.
Instagram Academy is a part of the “Instagram for Vietnam'' campaign, which aims to encourage the spirit of the young generation, as well as promoting positivity among the Vietnamese youth community. Following the success of the “Facebook for Vietnam” campaign launched in 2020, “Instagram for Vietnam” initiative continues the goal to support economic recovery and boost digital creativity amongst Vietnamese youngsters, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as in the long term.
Since the prevailing COVID-19 pandemic is taking its toll on the economy and businesses are facing huge difficulties in finding new customers and maintaining revenue, Instagram Academy is initiated to open a new direction for businesses, helping SMBs in Viet Nam attract customers, especially young ones, thus boost sales and achieve the ultimate goal to recover and promote business activities.
According to Instagram, there are about 25 million businesses worldwide leveraging Instagram as one effective selling channel. More than 90 per cent of Instagram users follow at least one company on the platform. In Viet Nam, nearly 9 out of 10 MillenialZ (aged 18-38) usually take a positive brand action on Instagram.
