Vietnam’s Minister of Information and Communications had a talk with the Minister of Communications of Cuba to strengthen cooperation in information technologies, earlier this week.
According to a press release, Vietnam’s Minister appreciated the ties in ICT and telecommunications between the two countries as well as the cooperation between the two ministries in recent years.
He spoke about the development of the telecommunications and IT industry of Vietnam as well as specific targets for 2019 and the following years.
He praised Vietnam’s achievements in the ICT field. The Cuban government is currently interested in the digitalisation of Cuba, as well as strengthening its cybersecurity. Over the next few years, the Cuban government will issue a decree on the security plan for the ICT industry.
During this trip, the delegation got a more comprehensive understanding of the actual situation of 4G network development in Vietnam.
The Ministry of Information and Communication in Vietnam will share management experience in network security, 4G development, and legal framework in the field of telecommunications and ICT. At the same time, businesses of both sides will work towards specific cooperation in technologies.
At the meeting, Vietnam’s Prime Minister was pleased with the multifaceted collaboration between the two countries, specifically in ICT and telecommunications. He believed that this visit would contribute to further strengthening the relationship between Vietnam and Cuba. He also tasked the ministry with directing enterprises to study the possibility of boosting ICT trade in Cuba.
Vietnam and Cuba have been collaborating on telecommunications and IT development for several years. Last year, the two countries signed an agreement to expand this cooperation to cover areas including the sharing of information on policies, legal frameworks, and vocational training.
Within the country, Vietnam is pushing for the development of communication technology adoption. Earlier this week, the Ministry launched a forum to support technology businesses.
The event’s main objective was to support the Vietnamese technology business community and develop it into a driving force for economic breakthroughs; helping the country escape the medium-income gap and become a developed nation.
Up till now, digital-based commerce brought back about US $3.5 billion for Vietnam or 1.7% of its GDP and the figure is expected to reach US $42 billion by 2030. Companies, which play an important role in economic growth, cannot produce and advertise their products effectively. Hence, technology development must be one of the country’s top priority.
Vietnam’s ICT sector has around 50,000 enterprises with combined revenues of about US $100 billion. To increase this figure, the government plans to adopt a national digital transformation strategy for 2019.
The forum Make In Vietnam covered five zones under Industry 4.0: economics (finance, e-commerce); transport, construction and natural resources (environment); healthcare and tourism; agriculture; and number conversion.