National digital transformation receives positive signals from ministries, departments, and agencies.

Currently, over 50% of ministries, sectors, and localities have developed and begun implementing programs, projects, and plans for digital transformation. Many Vietnamese technology companies have mastered core technologies and developed technology platforms for digital transformation, with approximately 40 "Make in Vietnam" platforms launched. The application of digital technology and digital transformation for businesses has also been promoted. The Ministry of Information and Communications has launched a portal to support small and medium-sized enterprises in digital transformation, and to date, it has assisted hundreds of businesses in using digital platforms for digital transformation.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh visits an exhibition of digital technology equipment and applications. (Photo: Duong Giang/VNA)

Regarding the deployment of digital signatures as of the end of October 2023, the Ministry of Information and Communications has granted operating licenses to 25 businesses providing public digital signature certification services. The number of public CAs in the period 2009-2023 (2018-September 2023) shows the increasing number of businesses licensed to provide digital signature certification services, indicating the potential for growth in the digital signature certification service market. The number of active digital certificates (number of active certificates) has also been observed. Recently, public CAs have continued to maintain and develop the issuance of digital certificates to organizations, businesses, and individuals using services in key application areas such as e-Tax, e-Customs, and e-Social Insurance.

The Ministry of Information and Communications has officially licensed public digital signature certification organizations to provide remote signing and mobile PKI services. As of September 2023, the Ministry of Information and Communications had licensed 10 public CAs to provide digital signature services using the remote signing model.

Digital transformation in the energy sector, with a priority focus on the power industry, aims to maximize and automate networks for efficient electricity supply.

Currently, in the context of accelerating national digital transformation, traditional digital signature authentication services (USB Token) have not kept pace with technological trends and the widespread use of smartphones. Remote digital signing or signing on mobile devices can be used on multiple devices such as smartphones, tablets, and laptops.

The National Data Integration and Sharing Platform (NDXP) has been enhanced in terms of service capacity. As of October 24, 2023, more than 103 ministries, agencies, localities, organizations, and businesses have connected to NDXP; 9 databases and 15 information systems have been connected and provide data sharing services on NDXP; the total cumulative number of transactions through NDXP since its launch has reached approximately 1.5 billion; the total number of transactions through NDXP in 2023 reached approximately 486.5 million; on average, about 1.6 million transactions are conducted daily through NDXP. - Regarding the development of databases to create a foundation for e-Government development: National Population Database: The Ministry of Public Security officially launched the National Population Database System on July 1, 2021. The national population database has been connected with 15 ministries and agencies, one state-owned enterprise (EVN), three telecommunications companies, and 63 localities.

Received 1,287,085,416 requests for information lookup and verification; 537,264,707 requests for citizen information synchronization, successfully synchronizing 227,739,598 citizen information records into the population database. Insurance Database: To date, the Vietnam Social Security system has verified 91.2 million demographic information records in the database managed by Vietnam Social Security with the national population database, and has provided and shared 131,751,885 records of social insurance and health insurance information with the national population database. National Electronic Civil Registry Database.

To date, all 63 provinces and centrally-administered cities have implemented online registration of births, marriages, and deaths, and established data linkages between the provincial-level administrative procedure information system and the Ministry of Justice's electronic civil registration and management system. This ensures data synchronization and uniformity, reducing operational time for civil registration officials. Regarding the national land database: all 63 provinces and cities have been and are currently developing the national land database; nationwide, databases are available for 450 out of 705 districts. The restructuring and implementation of three essential online public services have been completed, with specific results as of the end of August 2023.

With the Party and State's policies and guidelines on digital transformation, Vietnam is one of the first countries in the world to have a national digital transformation program and strategy, making Vietnam a country with a digital transformation awareness that is on par with advanced countries worldwide. This is a favorable condition for Vietnam to proactively exploit the opportunities brought about by the technological revolution and make breakthroughs, changing its ranking.

Quynh Lien