Vietnam is evolving robustly in information technology and telecommunications (ICT) and devising a strategy to grow further, the Deputy Director of the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) Information Technology Department, Nguyen Thanh Tuyen, noted recently. The country has surpassed many IT powerhouses in this field and ranks second globally in phone production and export, accounting for 13.3% of the global market share. It has been also placed among the top countries in electronics export and game production, the official stated at an event held on the sidelines of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) Digital World 2021.
According to a report, at the event, representatives from enterprises discussed Vietnam’s role in global technology and the supply chain, e-commerce policies, and domestic enterprises’ innovation capacity. Vietnam’s strong awareness and determination towards digital transformation have been seen from the central to local levels. The country has issued the National Digital Transformation Programme till 2025, with a vision to 2030, which features three main pillars: e-government, digital economy, and digital society.
The Deputy Director of the MIC’s Authority of Information Technology Application explained that Vietnam has been fostering digital transformation in eight areas: healthcare, education, finance-banking, agriculture, transport and logistics, energy, environmental and natural resources, and industrial production. The plan aims to develop a digital government, economy, and society as well as facilitate the formation of digital enterprises that can compete in the global market.
Underscoring the importance of technology in fighting COVID-19, reviving the economy, and living in the “new normal,” Tuyen said that shortly after the COVID-19 resurgence struck the southern cities and provinces, many tech firms introduced new solutions to fight the virus. People have changed their way of doing business, thinking, working, and living to stay safe and develop themselves, he said, urging tech companies to continue helping the country recover the economy.
Contactless payment systems have significantly aided recovery. E-commerce helps limit direct contacts and enables enterprises, cooperatives, and household businesses to diversify their channels of distribution. They can sell goods online and gain access to a larger and more diverse market. The large majority (73%) of Vietnamese consumers are multi-channel banking users. This means they use a combination of digital banks and physical branches. Fintech and e-wallet penetration reached 56% in 2021 for Vietnam, a hike of 40 percentage points from 2017. This penetration level is higher than the average of APAC emerging markets (at 54%) and developed markets (43%).
Vietnam is witnessing an increase in demand for online and mobile banking services from consumers, which is driving the digital transformation of banks. Online transactions in Vietnam for the first four months of this year jumped 66% compared with the same period last year, which has been accelerated enormously by the pandemic.
As OpenGov Asia reported, there has also been a huge increase in the use of e-wallets, payments via smartphones and QR codes, and high demand for ‘instant credit’ solutions such as buy-now-pay-later, particularly among those segments of the population that remain unbanked or underbanked. Vietnam’s consumers are demanding digital financial solutions, and the industry is rising to the challenge by using cutting-edge digital banking solutions, gaining attention around the world.
