A pending project on national digital transition aims for the digital industry to contribute 25 percent of Viet Nam’s GDP by 2025 and for the country to be placed fourth among ASEAN member states in terms of national digital ranking.

Illustrative photo (Source: VNA)

The project, designed by the Ministry of Information and Communications, is opened for public feedback before being submitted to Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

It consists of three phases, implemented between 2019 and 2030. The first phase (2019 – 2020) will focus on digitisation in socio-economic areas to boost productivity, create new development sources, build relevant infrastructure and legal framework and provide guidance for enterprises on digital transition.

The second phase (2021 – 2025) aims to turn digitisation into a part of the national competitiveness. During the period, digital transition will take place across sectors, particularly in updating business models to apply digital platforms and ecosystems and in forming value chains.

The third phase (2026 – 2030) targets a comprehensive digital-based society and economy, with new digital industries formed. Significant support will be funneled into technological fields like artificial intelligence (AI), Big Data, and Internet of Things.

Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Manh Hung said Viet Nam will announce its national digital transition strategy this year.

Affordable smartphones and mobile data plans have driven recent growth of internet usage in Viet Nam. The country has about 64 million internet users (approximately 67 percent of the population), placing it among the top 20 countries with the highest internet penetration.

Meanwhile, more and more businesses have applied digital technology to production, business activities and management, which is reflected in the rapidly increasing rate of new technologies such as cloud computing, AI and automation.

A survey of about 5,000 businesses in Viet Nam conducted by the Viet Nam E-Commerce Association revealed that 43 percent of enterprises used websites, 32 percent used social networks and 15 percent used mobile applications to sell their products in 2018.

(Source: VNA)