Vietnam will need to do more if it wants to become a digital powerhouse as envisioned in the socio-economic development strategy adopted by the Party in February 2021, said a report of the World Bank.
Vietnam will need to do more if it wants to become a digital powerhouse as envisioned in the socio-economic development strategy adopted by the Party in February 2021, said a report of the World Bank.
In its latest edition of Taking Stock – the World Bank’s biannual update on Vietnam’s economic performance, the WB stressed that Vietnam needs to ensure the development of a digitally skilled labour force, the emergence of a dynamic and agile local private sector, and good but secure access to information.
The report reviews the recent developments in the Vietnamese economy and discusses the economy’s short- to medium-term prospects, highlighting domestic and external risks associated to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The report said that in order to improve its economic autonomy, Vietnam needs to take advantage of existing conditions to become a digital powerhouse.
“While downside risks have heightened, economic fundamentals remain solid in Vietnam, and the economy could converge toward the pre-pandemic GDP growth rate of 6.5 to 7 percent from 2022 onward”, Rahul Kitchlu, World Bank Acting Country Director for Vietnam, said in the WB's recent press release.
Vietnam aims to be among the top 50 countries in the ICT Development Index as early as 2025, and its digital economy is hope to account for one third of the country's GDP by the end of the decade, instead of only 5 percent.
According to Jacques Morisset, WB Lead Economist for Vietnam, digital transformation is happening in Vietnam and the COVID-19 shock is a big driving factor. Since the appearance of the COVID-19 pandemic, Vietnam has witnessed a great change in the application of new digitization tools in both private and public sectors.
The WB estimated that in June 2021, about two-thirds of private enterprises in Vietnam have access to technologies related to the digital economy. This is a huge leap from the pre-COVID-19 period.
Vietnam still has a lot of work to do, Morisset said.
In addition to upgrading infrastructure, Vietnam needs to encourage the application of digital technology and attract investment to create conditions for small businesses to participate in the digital economy, he added.
He also underlined the necessity for Vietnam to upgrade digital technology infrastructures, and equip workers with digital skills to help them become more dynamic in adapting to new technologies.
In the short term, Vietnam can take advantage of the presence of many famous technology enterprises such as Intel, Apple and Samsung to learn and improve digital skills for local labourers working for these corporations, he said.
The Vietnamese Government can issue a series of initiatives to attract talents from expatriates working in digital technology fields around the world, he added./.
VNA
