Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has asked ministries, sectors and
localities, as well as businesses and researchers nationwide to raise
their awareness of the role information and technology has in
development and improving the national competitive capacity.
“IT application and development is an important task of the whole
political system, especially leaders of sectors and agencies,” the Prime
Minister was speaking at the opening ceremony of the third Information
and Communications Technology (ICT) Summit in Hanoi on June 20.
He said the development and application of IT in
production, business and management to improve Vietnam’s
competitiveness is the shortest way to help the country catch up with
developed nations.
Since 2000, the Government
has implemented a number of policies and measures to strengthen the
application and development of IT to serve the country’s
industrialisation and modernisation, identifying IT as a catalyst for
development, which contributes to the country’s socio-economy and
culture, said the PM.
Over the past decade, IT has
become a spearhead economic sector of the country with high growth rate,
accounting for nearly 7 percent of the country’s total GDP, while
serving the development of other sectors, he noted.
PM Dung said IT infrastructure and services have been developing to
match those of the region and the world. In terms of establishing
electronic government, Vietnam now ranks fourth in Southeast Asia
after Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei, he cited, adding that in
2012, the country leaped seven steps to 83rd position out of 190
countries that were surveyed by UNESCO.
He added
that Vietnam is listed as one of the 10 most attractive countries in
software outsourcing and the second largest partner of Japan, while
Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City have been named among 10 newly emerged
cities in the field.
The Government leader
emphasised that Vietnam has advantages in IT, with young and
highly-qualified human resources. To promote this strength, the
Government has carried out a proposal to make Vietnam a strong
country in ICT, followed by a plan to build an infrastructure system for
modern development, said the PM.
Earlier this year,
the Government approved a proposal to simplify administrative
procedures and improve citizen profiles to reform state management and
pave the way for easier transactions in all fields, he added.
PM Dung highly valued the participation of the former Japanese Prime
Minister Yukio Hatoyama in this year’s summit, which can help further
the effective cooperation between the two countries in the field.
Vietnam hopes to receive more support and cooperation from Japan
– a leading world power in science and technology, and learn from the
country’s experience in the field, the Prime Minister affirmed.
Addressing the event, Yukio Hatoyama shared science and technology
supported policies in his country. He said technology has helped Japan
become a leading economic power. He also analysed the impacts of
science and technology on Japan ’s economy and society.
He suggested that Vietnam should pay more attention to human
resources training in the field through cooperation with foreign
partners, adding that Japan ’s experience can help Vietnam in IT
infrastructure building and personnel training.
Attracting the participation of over 500 delegates, the 2013 ICT Summit
was themed “Information technology – Foundation for New Development
Method for the Improvement of National Competitiveness”.
The event is a forum for senior leaders of relevant sectors, central
and local policymakers, and agencies and businesses that require IT
application.
According to PM Dung, through the past
two events, the summit has contributed valuable proposals in the design
of the Government’s policies in the field./.