Full steam ahead with digital transformation

October 27, 2020 | 10:31

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The ICT industry’s role has been significantly elevated by COVID-19 challenges, creating opportunities for it to leapfrog in development. Nguyen Manh Hung, Minister of Information and Communications, delves into how important digital transformation is to Vietnam in the new development context.

1515 p10 full steam ahead with digital transformation

Nguyen Manh Hung, Minister of Information and Communications

This year is an important one for Vietnam’s ICT industry. In June, the prime minister approved the National Programme on Digital Transformation by 2025, setting off a bold move towards the country’s digital transformation.

Vietnam considers digital platforms the way to accelerate national digital transformation, cybersecurity as a key to create trust in digital solutions, and institutional reform as the main driver of digital transformation.

As such, the “Make in Vietnam” digital infrastructure is ready to support the development of the digital economy and a society. This Vietnamese-made infrastructure not only deals with problems in Vietnam but also contributes to coping with global issues.

For decades now, digital technology and digitalisation have been on the agenda, resulting in profound changes.

In the last few years, digitalisation has become an irreversible trend that provides every country, economy, organisation, and individual with unprecedented development opportunities, as well as corresponding challenges that lead to changes in habits and lifestyles.

Digital transformation is not only technological transformation, perhaps more importantly, it is transformation in the design mindset and micro- and macro-level policy formulation. Things that are acceptable today may not make the cut tomorrow and will have to be quickly changed.

As a developing country, for the last 30 years Vietnam has maintained a stable and cooperative mindset. The country has been boasting one of the highest growth rates in the world. These results were achieved through the significant contribution of the ICT industry.

Digital transformation should be promoted more strongly to serve people and ensure that no-one is left behind. The government of Vietnam has promulgated a National Digital Transformation Programme specifying detailed goals, solutions, and schemes for this.

To promote digital technology development and digital transformation for a world of peace, cooperation, and prosperity, with the direct goal of winning the fight against the pandemic, and to ensure sustainability and development during and after the pandemic, the country has set three priorities.

Firstly, it is required to determine several strategies to apply during and post-pandemic regarding digital transformation, including directions for the cooperation between the International Telecommunication Union and member countries.

Secondly, it is required to promote the development of open standards for 5G technology to establish competitiveness between manufacturers and reduce costs for network development.

Thirdly, it is required to achieve an international convention on cyberspace to promote cooperation on cybersecurity, sovereignty of countries, and people’s rights and benefits in cyberspace.

Excerpt from speech by Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam at ITU Digital World 2020, October 20

The platforms for virtual exhibitions and meetings, including ITU Digital World 2020 hosted by Vietnam on October 20-22, as well as the digital solutions used in the prevention and fight against the COVID-19 pandemic such as Bluezone and Ncoviare are clear-cut evidence for this.

As initiated by Vietnam, ITU Digital World 2020, the most important annual event for the telecommunications and IT industries, was for the very first time in its half-a-century-long history hosted virtually.

Vietnamese and international technology companies have been strengthening cooperation to build and develop digital platforms to support the organisation of virtual exhibitions and meetings.

Any challenge creates opportunities – and the bigger the challenge, the larger the opportunity. COVID-19 has been a challenge of a rare magnitude for the entire human race, one that comes around only once in a hundred years.

COVID-19 has created a tremendous push to digital transformation, urging the globe to hasten the development of a digital world as the health crisis has made global collaboration more necessary than ever.

Vietnam is gradually checking out the conditions to become a technologically-advanced country, positioning technology as a growth motivator for the entire nation and promoting international cooperation to build out a digital world.

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