She serves as Vice President of the General Association of Vietnamese in Japan, President of the Vietnamese Association in the Kansai region, Principal of the Cay Tre Vietnamese Community Language School, and Director of the Viet Nam Studies Centre in Japan. She is also one of 100 outstanding overseas Vietnamese, representing 6.5 million Vietnamese living abroad worldwide, who were awarded certificates of merit by the Viet Nam Fatherland Front Central Committee in early February 2026.
Ambassador of the Vietnamese language
Living and working in Japan, Le Thuong actively participates in various associations and organisations in the hope of creating more opportunities to organise activities oriented towards her homeland. Throughout her work, one issue that continually concerns her is how to preserve and develop the Vietnamese language, ensuring it does not merely exist as a maintenance subject but truly becomes a cultural space in the lives of younger generations of Vietnamese living overseas.
Organised entirely free of charge, Vietnamese language classes at the Cay Tre Vietnamese Community Language School in Osaka, Japan, have made a significant contribution to preserving the mother tongue for Vietnamese children born and raised abroad. The school has developed online classes with the support of the University of Languages and International Studies under Viet Nam National University, Ha Noi, alongside cultural, dance, and singing classes to enhance students’ communication skills. Vietnamese language contests have also helped spread an enthusiastic learning spirit among younger generations.
Thuong believes that “preserving the mother tongue within overseas Vietnamese communities is not about clinging to the past but about preparing for the future. A future in which younger generations of overseas Vietnamese are both global citizens and Vietnamese with cultural depth, capable of connecting and making meaningful contributions to the country in the era of international integration.”
In 2025, Le Thuong was one of six outstanding candidates awarded the title “Ambassador of the Vietnamese Language” in the contest “Searching for Ambassadors of the Vietnamese Language in Overseas Vietnamese Communities 2025”, organised by the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese Affairs under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In early February this year, she and her colleagues coordinated with Ha Noi National University of Education to organise a Vietnamese language proficiency assessment and grant official certificates in Japan. According to Associate Professor, Dr Nguyen Duc Son, Rector of Ha Noi National University of Education, organising such a proficiency examination is a concrete step to popularise Vietnamese and help maintain and promote the language within the Vietnamese community in Japan.
“Each overseas Vietnamese has different living circumstances, professions, and choices. But when the Fatherland needs us, when the country calls, deep down many people, like me, all wish to contribute and to return in one way or another, however small,” Le Thuong shared.
Actively connecting with the homeland
As an active organiser of events such as the launch of the Vietnamese Community Book Station in Japan, Reading Day, a painting contest about Viet Nam, the Viet Nam Cultural Festival in Osaka, and Lunar New Year celebrations, Le Thuong, President of the Vietnamese Association in the Kansai region, hopes to create a cultural space where Vietnamese people living and studying in Japan can meet and connect. She also regularly organises meaningful social activities, including fundraising to support people affected by natural disasters and hardship, and presenting Lunar New Year gifts to patients undergoing treatment in hospitals and disadvantaged individuals in localities across the country.
For her, charitable activities not only provide material support but also help the Vietnamese community in Japan feel that they are not alone or separated from the homeland. It is also a way for younger generations to understand that, wherever they live, Vietnamese people always bear responsibility towards their compatriots and the Fatherland.
Honoured to join a delegation of overseas Vietnamese participating in the Great Solidarity Voyage visiting soldiers and residents in Truong Sa, the 50th anniversary of the Liberation of the South and National Reunification, and the parade marking the 80th anniversary of the success of the August Revolution and National Day (September 2), Thuong described these as invaluable experiences for someone living far from home. She deeply realised that geographical distance has never been a barrier to patriotism; on the contrary, the further one goes, the deeper and more enduring that love becomes.
After returning from Truong Sa and continuing to take part in major national events in 2025, she shared that she felt even more clearly the invisible yet powerful bond between overseas Vietnamese and the Fatherland. It is not only a connection through policies or community-oriented programmes but a bond built on trust, emotion, and shared responsibility for the nation’s future.
