General Secretary To Lam emphasized that the establishment of the National Data Association in the current context is extremely important - Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac
On March 22, in Hanoi, the National Data Association was officially launched and successfully held its first National Congress, term I (2025-2030).
The Congress was honored to welcome Comrade To Lam - General Secretary of the Party Central Committee, Comrade Pham Minh Chinh - Prime Minister, along with other Party and State leaders, representatives of associations, corporations and enterprises.
The birth of the National Data Association is very important.
Speaking at the Congress, General Secretary To Lam emphasized that we are entering the dawn of the digital age, a period when data has become an important resource and means of production, a new energy, and even the "blood" of the digital economy. Digital transformation, with data at its core, is fundamentally changing the way we live, work and develop.
The General Secretary said that our Party and State have recognized the importance of data early on. Resolution No. 52-NQ/TW dated September 27, 2019 of the Politburo on a number of guidelines and policies to proactively participate in the Fourth Industrial Revolution has set out the policy of proactively participating in regional and global legal frameworks to develop the digital economy. Perfecting laws and policies on data and data governance, facilitating the creation, connection, sharing and exploitation of data to ensure safety and security of domestic networks, moving towards connecting with the ASEAN region and internationally.
Most recently, Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW dated December 22, 2024 of the Politburo clearly identified that data is the center of digital transformation and an important driving force for development. The Resolution also proposed pilot policies, creating an initial legal corridor for promoting data development and exploitation.
General Secretary To Lam emphasized that the establishment of the National Data Association in the current context is extremely important - Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac
The General Secretary also frankly pointed out the shortcomings in current data management and exploitation such as: inadequate awareness of the role of data; data infrastructure is still scattered and lacks connectivity; high-quality human resources in data are still lacking; the legal framework is not complete, especially in areas such as data security, privacy protection and personal data, data security and safety still have many challenges.
The General Secretary noted that it is necessary to clearly understand that data governance is not only a policy issue but also a technological issue. Without technology, it is impossible to collect, store, process, analyze and share data effectively and securely.
Affirming that the establishment of the National Data Association in the current context is extremely important, as a common home for "digital knights" and a pioneer in implementing Resolution 57-NQ/TW and Resolutions on science, technology... to turn Vietnam into a digital nation, with digital governance, digital economy, digital society developed based on "correct-sufficient-clean-living" data, the General Secretary proposed 7 key tasks for the National Data Association.
General Secretary To Lam and Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh congratulate the Standing Committee of the National Data Association for the 2025-2030 term - Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac
7 key tasks
One is to research, propose, and perfect the legal corridor on data, creating conditions for data to be collected, circulated, connected, shared, and exploited to the maximum while still ensuring security, safety, and data sovereignty.
The Ministry of Public Security is drafting the Law on Personal Data Protection and the amended Law on Cyber Security (adding the function of state management of network information security) and is expected to submit them to the National Assembly for approval in 2025; submit them to the Government for promulgation of Decrees guiding the 2024 Data Law, so it is necessary to prioritize focusing all resources on this task.
Second is to promote the core role in building, developing, exploiting and enriching national data, focusing on four main pillars: people, location, activities and products.
Third is to proactively and actively apply, master, and move towards autonomy in core data technologies, especially artificial intelligence (AI), big data, blockchain, and cloud computing.
Delegates attending the Congress - Photo: VGP/Nhat Bac
The General Secretary also emphasized the role of the Association in a number of key programs and initiatives. The General Secretary pointed out that it is necessary to develop a data market for sustainable development; build a national data market, deploy a data platform to serve research, start-up development, innovation, and provide data-related products and services to serve sustainable socio-economic development; it is necessary to build a national open AI platform to help businesses easily access AI applications and note that it is Vietnamese artificial intelligence; quickly popularize data literacy for all people; raise awareness, knowledge and skills about data for the whole society, especially the value and importance of protecting personal data, as well as compliance with legal regulations.
The General Secretary also emphasized the need to soon organize data-based innovation challenges to encourage the community to come up with creative solutions based on data, creating a playground to maximize human potential in the field of science and technology; continue to strengthen the capacity for autonomy in data technology, prioritize, encourage, and create mechanisms so that "Make in Vietnam" data technology products can compete fairly in the market, especially the international market.
Fourth is to support the promotion of the construction of advanced data infrastructure, including data centers invested by the State and private enterprises.
The fifth is to strengthen international cooperation, learn from experience, attract resources and participate in global initiatives on data.
Sixth, build an effective enforcement and monitoring mechanism. State agencies, with the leading role of the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Science and Technology, and a number of related ministries and sectors, need to have a tighter and more synchronous monitoring system based on the strong application of digital technology to ensure that legal regulations are fully and effectively complied with.
Seven is data security, building data security systems and products, developing data security services, building data security standards, and forming an industry in this field.
The General Secretary affirmed that the Party and State will create all favorable conditions and provide maximum support for the development of the data sector, so that Vietnam can soon become a digital nation, a digital society, and a prosperous digital economy.
Hien Minh
Comment (0)