Digital transformation has permeated every individual and family.

Looking back over the past four years of digital transformation, how would you assess the achievements Vietnam has made?

Dr. Vo Tri Thanh

Dr. Vo Tri Thanh: Previously, the concept of "digital transformation" was thought of as something quite abstract, but it's immediately apparent that the digital transformation has permeated every individual and family. We can feel this most clearly in the shift of electronic transactions. Now, smartphones with online shopping applications have become indispensable tools in the lives of every Vietnamese person, from urban to rural areas. People can shop without going to the store, without paying cash directly, everyone has a banking app, everyone knows how to transfer money, everyone knows QR codes… these are positive movements that can be seen immediately.

Alongside this, innovative startups and technology-related startups are increasingly developing, and Vietnamese businesses have clearly identified digital transformation as the necessary path and the future of the economy . Foreign direct investment (FDI) into the information technology and digital technology sectors is also growing stronger.

In particular, people are clearly seeing the story of digital transformation through changes in the public service sector. In our country in recent years, online public services have made significant progress. People can register for passports, renew driver's licenses, pay traffic fines, etc., from home. Businesses that previously had to travel back and forth for a whole week to complete customs declarations for import and export goods can now do so from home; tax settlements, land registration documents, etc., can also be processed online.

That's about intuitive perception. As for the figures, according to the Ministry of Information and Communications, the target for the contribution of all digital economic components to GDP by 2025 is approximately 25%, and by the end of 2023 it had already reached 16.5%. Vietnam is also the fastest-growing e-commerce market in East Asia, among the top 10 fastest-growing countries in the world … While we are behind other countries, achieving such a growth rate is quite promising.

Online public services are the core of e- government .

According to him, what are the main pillars that have propelled Vietnam to such rapid progress in the digital transformation race?

E-government is one of the three main pillars of the digital transformation "revolution," alongside digital society and digital economy. In fact, the concept of e-government has existed in our country for two decades, but it is only in the last five years that we have truly seen positive results, thanks to the strong determination of the Government.

According to statistics from ministries and agencies, 80.53% of administrative procedures are now provided as online public services, with 47.79% of these procedures being provided as full-process online public services. To date, all 63 localities have completed the consolidation of public service portals and electronic one-stop systems into a provincial-level administrative procedure resolution information system. Some localities have implemented full-process online public services very well, such as Da Nang (95.56%), Ca Mau (91.99%), and Tay Ninh (91.98%). Ho Chi Minh City, Quang Ninh, and Thua Thien-Hue are also leading localities in this regard.

Why do I say that digital government must be the most important pillar? Because online public services, if implemented well, will bring many benefits to citizens and businesses, not only reducing time and costs for society but also contributing to transparency and improving the investment and business environment. This is the foundation for the development of a digital society and digital economy.

As you pointed out, currently 80.53% of administrative procedures are provided as online public services, but the 2023 Provincial Public Administration and Governance Performance Index (PAPI) report shows that the majority of people have not yet used online public services. In 2023, only about 8.3% of respondents said they had used the National Public Service Portal and 7.6% had used the provincial-level public service portals nationwide. How do you view this disparity?

That's precisely the shortcoming I want to address. On one hand, there's the issue of complete service provision, but more importantly, there's the question of how many people actually use the service. There are many reasons why the gap between these two indicators is quite wide in many places and localities. It could be due to insufficient communication, or because the procedures aren't simple or convenient enough. Not to mention the frequent errors in the public service portal; the inconvenience and difficulty in submitting, updating, supplementing, and tracking online applications, and online payment issues… In many cases, after filling out all the information, the network crashes, the computer freezes, or applications are repeatedly rejected for unclear reasons, leading people to choose to go in person for faster service.

Furthermore, the increasing prevalence of personal information theft, initially involving harassment and later fraud, has led many to fear that disclosing personal documents and files through software will result in data leaks and breaches.

Clearly, behind the positive changes that are immediately apparent, there is still much about digital transformation that needs to be examined more deeply and comprehensively.

What exactly does that mean, sir?

Digital transformation is truly a revolution. It changes the operation of all aspects of socio-economic life, the way production and business are conducted… and above all, it is a revolution in institutions. In this sense, we see that current legal tools and operating methods, although much more refined than before, are still quite far from expectations.

People and businesses expect digital transformation to go beyond simply browsing on smartphones; they hope it will generate increased productivity through improved management and smarter production and business practices. However, it's clear that the rate of productivity growth in recent years has not met the set targets. Even some leading economic regions have experienced a decline in productivity growth.

Not to mention human resource training, the human resources needed for this revolution are still lacking in sufficient skills. For example, we want to develop the semiconductor industry, but there is a severe shortage of skilled technology workers. Labor productivity and human resource skills are mainly contributed to industries producing information technology and electronic devices, digital equipment, etc., while the integration of digital technology into traditional sectors such as agriculture, industry, and services to make businesses smarter, more efficient, and more productive remains quite limited.

For a digital government, it's crucial to understand that it's not simply about providing online public services, but about a genuine, qualitative reform and transformation; it's not just about interaction between the government and businesses and citizens, but also about the investment and business environment. These things must become symbols of the efforts of a government and a country striving to keep pace with this revolution.

The digital transformation revolution is not purely a technological revolution, but also an institutional one. The speed of digital transformation depends heavily on mindset, policies, methods, and management, where leaders play a decisive role, not only directing but also directly implementing and using the changes. At the heart of this transformation are people, and more than just minds, it's the heart.

Dr. Vo Tri Thanh

Thanhnien.vn

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/chuyen-doi-so-da-len-loi-vao-tung-ca-nhan-gia-dinh-185240906220450569.htm