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| Ms. Ramla Khalidi, UNDP Representative in Vietnam. |
Digital transformation has always been a focus of UNDP’s global work. How do you see the digital transformation process taking place in Vietnam?
First of all, it is worth noting that Vietnam has recognized the catalytic role of digitalization early on, setting ambitious national goals for a prosperous digital nation by 2030. Achieving these goals requires fundamental and comprehensive reforms in government operations, business economic activities, and the way people live and work.
The Prime Minister’s approval of the “National Digital Transformation Program to 2025, with a vision to 2030” in 2020 marked an important milestone in Vietnam’s digital development journey. The program puts people at the center, considering digital transformation as a key roadmap to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Today, about three-quarters of Vietnamese people use the Internet, making Vietnam one of the most connected countries in the world.
However, there is still a significant gap in digital literacy among Vietnamese users. This gap is particularly acute when it comes to e-commerce and digital services, where people, especially in rural areas, still prefer to use cash rather than digital wallets or bank accounts and online financial services.
UNDP's annual Provincial Governance and Public Administration Performance Index (PAPI) survey in Viet Nam in 2022 showed that despite high internet penetration, less than 5% of respondents nationwide accessed e-governance services through the National e-Service Portal.
Effective online services development must go hand in hand with raising awareness and developing digital literacy, supporting people to move from cash and paper processes to accessing digital financial and e-governance services, cashless payments and digital services confidently and safely while maintaining options for those who do not have access to digital services.
How do you evaluate Vietnam's goal of becoming the leading digital economy in the ASEAN region by 2030?
The National Digital Transformation Program reflects Vietnam's aspiration to become a digital nation and have a leading digital economy in the ASEAN region by 2030, while promoting comprehensive testing of new technologies in the digital economy.
With this national program, Vietnam is well-positioned to capitalize on its potential. The total number of IT human resources in Vietnam is about 1.15 million, with 160 universities nationwide offering technical training programs.
By May 2022, thanks to the direction of the national program, all 63 provinces and cities had established a Steering Committee for Digital Transformation, 55/63 localities issued resolutions on digital transformation and 59 localities issued programs/projects and plans for digital transformation within five years, demonstrating specific political determination to complete the goals set by the Prime Minister.
International cooperation is considered one of the solutions to help Vietnam adapt quickly to innovation. Can you give some typical experiences in the world that can be applied in Vietnam?
E-procurement systems provide an online platform for public procurement processes, making them more transparent and accountable, reducing the risk of corruption. Countries such as Ukraine, Kenya and Brazil have implemented e-procurement systems with support from international organizations such as the World Bank and the United Nations.
In Viet Nam, UNDP is supporting the National Centralised Drug Procurement Centre, digitising their processes to improve transparency and efficiency, while reducing the risk of corruption.
Other examples include UNDP partnering with the government of Estonia to develop e-government platforms to ensure seamless interaction between government and citizens.
In Türkiye, UNDP supports the digital transformation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through training and consultancy to develop integrated models to improve productivity and competitiveness. Vietnam can apply similar strategies to support SMEs to compete in the global market in the context of the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
In recent years, many countries have developed telemedicine services that use online connections between different medical facilities, doctors, and patients to improve people's access to quality medical services.
These services play an important role during outbreaks, helping to reduce the risk of transmission, effectively serving remote communities, maintaining access to health services during natural disasters and severe weather, connecting local doctors with specialists to diagnose, treat and monitor chronic diseases, saving time and travel costs for patients, and reducing overcrowding at higher-level health facilities.
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| Today, about three-quarters of Vietnamese people use the Internet. |
In Viet Nam, UNDP has worked closely with the Ministry of Health to develop and pilot the grassroots telemedicine system “Doctors for Every Family”. Initially launched to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic, the system connects commune health stations with provincial and district health facilities to provide consultation, monitoring and professional medical advice. The system has since been deployed in eight provinces and cities in Viet Nam, focusing on remote, mountainous and climate-vulnerable provinces.
By the end of 2023, about 3,000 health workers had been trained on the system, more than 1.3 million community members had set up accounts, and more than 70,000 telemedicine consultations had been conducted. In the coming time, “Doctor for Every Family” will expand to the next nine provinces with the support of the Korea Foundation for International Health (KOFIH) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
UNDP stands ready to share further lessons and models developed through our Global Digital Strategy that Viet Nam can adapt to support its national digital transformation.
Besides digital transformation, green transformation also brings opportunities and challenges in the process of developing a circular economy. In your opinion, what are the prospects of this process in Vietnam?
Accelerating the transition to a circular economy is a powerful means for Vietnam to accelerate progress and achieve the SDGs by the end of the decade. This requires a quantum leap in investment and effort to activate three enablers that we have identified as strategic because of their potential to generate positive knock-on impacts, including “digital technology and innovation”.
Despite ranking 86th globally in e-government by 2022, Vietnam faces challenges such as limited research and development funding (0.5% of GDP), coordination gaps in digital transformation, and inadequate digital infrastructure.
Increased investment in digital technologies for the circular economy can deliver advances in materials science and design, reduce costs for raw/volatile materials, create access to new markets and generate new revenue streams, especially in the context of the latest free trade agreements.
Digital technologies can provide further opportunities for circular businesses to thrive, such as sharing and reuse systems, product-as-a-service models, sourcing recycled content (e.g. in textiles), enhancing product circularity, leveraging assets through pricing, predicting demand, and developing smart value chains. Tools such as AI, big data, and automation will optimize resource use, improve transparency, and drive innovation.
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