VietNamNet Bridge – The IT industry is defined as the key economic sector of Vietnam. VietNamNet talked with Deputy Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Minh Hong on the sideline of the national workshop on the IT industry.

Deputy Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Minh Hong

The theme of the national workshop this year is “IT industry in new trend of investment”. What is the “new trend of investment” in the current global economic crisis?

In this situation, we need to take appropriate steps. In the past, when Vietnam wasn’t yet a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), the impacts of the Asian financial crisis 1997 on Vietnam were not great. But as Vietnam has integrated into the world, the country can’t avoid strong influences from the current crisis.

The financial and economic crisis has powerfully impacted capital flow. The trend of investment in the IT industry in this period will be: continuing to attract foreign investment, taking initiative in receiving investment, the shifting wave of information and communication technology, improving competitiveness of IT companies to help them confront the global financial crisis.

Local companies can’t directly compete with multinational groups at this moment so I think we need to cooperate with multinational groups to raise production capability and competitiveness to become a positive link in the global production value supply chain.

During the workshop, most participants have said they need more preferences from the government. What do you think about it?

The IT industry enjoys preferences at the highest level. The opinions of companies, organisations and associations raised at the workshop will be analysed and considered. However, the government’s assistance is not always the stimulus for the development of the software industry. Meanwhile, Vietnam has to realise its commitments on abolishing subsidies in all forms.

How will the government’s assistance be and what will IT businesses have to do to develop the IT industry?

The experience of Asian countries in developing their IT industries shows that maximum government assistance and enterprises’ efforts and sound awareness are the most important factors for the development of an IT industry. Vietnam won’t deviate from this formula.

The government’s assistance must be timely and have a time limit. Firstly, the government’s timely assistance will be a stimulus for the IT industry to take gigantic steps. Secondly, the government’s assistance can’t be continuous because resources are limited.

Actually, the government assisted some industries for quite a long time (before Vietnam joined the WTO), but the assistance wasn’t effective. Therefore, the government’s assistance for the IT industry will be restricted in respect to time.

I think the government’s assistance will be in the following forms: building stable and transparent legal environment, investing in research and development, helping businesses to build and advertise their brands and to apply advanced production management standards like ISO, CMM and CMMi, to train human resources through short-term, high-quality training courses, and developing sci-tech institutes.

But businesses’ policies are the decisive factor. Their effort is shown through investment in production and business, technology, market and human resources. If the government’s assistance policy is good but businesses are incapable, they can’t develop.

The software industry accounts for just 13% of the total turnover of the IT industry. Will the Ministry of Information and Communications and the National Steering Board for IT define a specific strategy to boost the development of the software industry?

The software industry makes up only 13% of the total turnover of the IT industry but it has a higher profit rate than the hardware industry. In the current situation, developing the software industry is one of the solutions to combat inflation, reduce the trade deficit and improve the effectiveness of the economy.

The Politburo’s instruction released in 2000 said that it is necessary to develop the IT industry as an important sector, especially the software industry. The Ministry of Information and Communications compiled and submitted to the government the Vietnam Software Industry Development Programme and the Vietnam Digital Content Development Programme. The goal of these programmes is that by 2010, the total income from software industry will be over $800 million, 40% from exports.

The Vietnam Software Technology and Digital Content Institute were set up recently to implement solutions to promote the development of this field in Vietnam. The Ministry of Information and Communications also compiled and submitted to the Prime Minister regulations on managing the software and digital content industry in Vietnam. This regulation is the basis for building and conducting software projects.

While waiting for the government’s approval of the above regulation, the Ministry of Information and Communications is working on some software industry development projects.

Huyen Chi