The lion’s share of the funding will be provided by the State budget and official development assistance (ODA) from foreign governments. The ICT development programme aims to expedite the application of e-government for administrative agencies and e-commerce for businesses, as well as to promote the production of computer equipment and to develop ICT services.
The initiative will also focus on training and upgrading the ICT workforce, seeking international co-operation and investment to develop the fledgling ICT industry and providing broader ICT access to the Vietnamese people.
Le Truong Tung, chairman of HCM City’s Computer Association, said that in accordance with the Government’s plan, all ministries and departments will need to speed up the application of ICT in their workplaces. At present, around 50 of the 63 provinces have opened their websites, but many have not yet been able to manage their administration using computers.
The Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry has also called for Government support in encouraging more businesses to apply e-commerce in order to reduce expenditures and increase competitiveness at home and abroad.
An estimated 10 per cent of companies in Ha Noi, HCM City and Da Nang have instituted e-commerce strategies. However, many enterprises have failed to apply them to their businesses because of a lack of ICT human resources and awareness of its importance.
Six new goals
The National Steering Committee on Information Technology (IT), which met in Ha Noi last Wednesday for its 9th session, set six goals for promoting IT in government and business for the 2006-10 period.
The goals included promoting the application of IT in businesses and State-owned agencies, e-commerce, univer-salisation of IT application, development of the IT market, and international co-operation and transfer of technology to improve IT management and IT policy-making.
The committee also discussed a scheme, developed by the Viet Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry, to assist businesses in using IT to integrate with the world economy. It also discussed ways of boosting co-operation with Japan in personnel training and software outsourcing for export.
Deputy Director of the National Assembly’s Committee on Science, Technology and Environment Tran Viet Hung proposed that the targets should be clearly stated.
For example, after five years, the committee should gauge how many businesses have implemented IT and how much its use contributes to the country’s GDP, Hung said.
Deputy Prime Minister Pham Gia Khiem said the development of the national IT programme will create break-throughs for certain industries and a domino effect for the Vietnamese economy.
The deputy PM stressed that the IT industry is highly technical and penetrates into other industries.
Khiem noted that the National Programme on IT application must be clear and detailed.
The National Steering Committee on Information Technology’s 10th session will be held by late June and will focus on discussing the draft law on IT, the master plan on e-commerce development between 2006-10 and several finance solutions for IT application and development projects.
Quelle: Viet Nam News, 21.04.2005
