Barre-Sinoussi is on a three-day visit to Ho Chi Minh City, where she will meet with officials of the Pasteur Institute, students, health officials and medical staff involved in treating and preventing HIV/AIDS.

During her meeting with students, the French scientist praised the constant efforts made by local residents, including young people in recent years.

She called for stronger cooperation among countries to prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS.

As one of the three scientists to discover the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that causes AIDS and the human papilloma virus that causes cervical cancer, she has been in the frontline against AIDS in many countries, especially in Cambodia and Vietnam.

The United Nations says that 2.7 million people are infected with HIV each year and approximately 95 percent of new HIV infections are found in low – and middle-income countries, with the vast majority in sub-Saharan Africa.