The Prime Minister visits and works at the National Innovation Center.

On the afternoon of October 12th, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh inspected the soon-to-be-inaugurated new facility of the National Innovation Center (NIC) at the Hoa Lac High-Tech Park and held a working session with leaders of several ministries and agencies to review and address proposals and recommendations related to the Center's operations.

This is the second time this year that Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh has visited and worked at the NIC and the Center's new facility in Hoa Lac.

After nearly three years of construction, the new facility of the National Innovation Center at Hoa Lac High-Tech Park (NIC Hoa Lac) will be officially inaugurated at the end of October 2023.

Simultaneously, the Vietnam International Innovation Exhibition 2023 (VIIE 2023) will be held from October 28th to November 1st at NIC Hoa Lac, with the participation of reputable domestic and international businesses such as SK, Samsung, Google, Meta, Signify, Intel, VISA, Viettel, FPT, THACO , VNPT, Sovico, MoMo, etc.

Mobilizing 1,000 billion VND to build a new NIC facility in Hoa Lac.

According to Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung, the total cost of constructing the new Hoa Lac National Innovation Center (NIC) is nearly 1,000 billion VND, but it will not use the state budget. Instead, it will mobilize funding and contributions from domestic and foreign businesses in various appropriate forms and through socialized investment.

The Minister expressed his determination and expectation to make NIC a leading innovation center in the region, attracting and activating domestic and international resources to promote innovation activities.

The Prime Minister delivers a speech at the working session (Photo: VGP).

Reporting at the meeting, Mr. Vu Quoc Huy, Director of NIC, stated that to date, regulations and rules on the organization and operation of the Center have been issued quite comprehensively, especially Government Decree No. 94/2020/ND-CP on the special mechanism for the Center.

NIC has gradually streamlined its organizational structure and added personnel to carry out its tasks. The Center's activities have been actively implemented, yielding effective results and having a ripple effect on the innovation ecosystem.

In particular, regarding semiconductor industry development, the Center has rapidly expanded its relationships with many partners (Synosyps, Cadence, Nvidia, etc.); implemented the construction of a semiconductor chip design and incubation center at NIC's facilities (expected to open in October-November 2023); researched a human resource development project for the semiconductor chip industry; built an innovation ecosystem for the semiconductor industry; and organized conferences and programs to connect domestic and international semiconductor industry partners.

The Vietnam Global Innovation Network has been formed with 2,000 members, including outstanding Vietnamese experts and intellectuals both domestically and internationally in 20 countries and territories (8 sub-networks in Germany, Japan, Australia, South Korea, Europe, Taiwan (China), the East Coast and West Coast of the United States).

Mr. Vu Quoc Huy - Director of NIC, reports at the working session (Photo: VGP).

However, despite the achievements, according to NIC, the mechanism for receiving domestic and foreign funding still faces many difficulties and has not yet mobilized large resources to implement large-scale support programs for innovative startups.

Some innovative startup activities lack the necessary conditions for implementation; the development and implementation of pilot mechanisms for innovation activities face many difficulties due to regulatory obstacles. There is also a lack of mechanisms and policies to guide the establishment and operation of innovation centers, leading to confusion among many localities and businesses in their implementation.

With the orientation of "gathering intelligence and spreading the benefits of innovation in Vietnam," in the coming time, the agencies will continue to improve the organizational structure of NIC to meet requirements, especially after the establishment of the Center's facility in Hoa Lac.

NIC recommends that relevant agencies review and develop general laws and policies on innovation nationwide, as well as regulations related to NIC, creating a sufficiently strong mechanism for testing and implementing innovation activities. Along with that, they should expedite the approval procedures for the planning and allocation of land for NIC to build a service area for experts.

Notably, NIC proposed that agencies review the system of regulations and policies specific to the semiconductor industry; build a superior institutional system that can be piloted right at NIC and other high-tech parks.

NIC also proposed collaborating with major technology corporations to promote innovation activities in Vietnam and develop shared centers for training and research in the semiconductor field.

Expanding in the direction of "4 in 1"

Concluding the meeting, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh first requested the urgent transfer of the Hoa Lac High-Tech Park from the Ministry of Science and Technology to Hanoi for management; and the planning and expansion of the Hoa Lac High-Tech Park in a "4-in-1" direction: high-tech park, commercial-service area, urban area, and industrial park.

To achieve this, it is necessary to amend and supplement regulations related to the operation of the Hoa Lac High-Tech Park. At the same time, the Ministry of Transport and Hanoi should immediately implement a metropolitan railway line from central Hanoi to Hoa Lac to address the transportation connectivity issue.

The Prime Minister held discussions with the Minister of Planning and Investment, Nguyen Chi Dung, and the Head of the National Innovation Center Management Board (Photo: VGP).

The Prime Minister welcomed and highly appreciated the Ministry of Planning and Investment, headed by Minister Nguyen Chi Dung, for demonstrating a spirit of daring to think, daring to act, and daring to innovate in promoting the establishment of the new NIC facility in Hoa Lac.

Essentially agreeing with the orientations and recommendations of the NIC, the Prime Minister stated that in the coming time, it is necessary to continue improving the physical infrastructure and facilities, consolidating the organizational structure of the Center; amending, supplementing, or issuing a new decree to replace Decree 94 on mechanisms and preferential policies for NICs, in which agencies need to research and propose an operating model suitable for the Center, propose a preferential policy framework to attract and retain human resources, and coordinate with relevant agencies…

The Prime Minister instructed the Ministry of Finance to coordinate with the Ministry of Planning and Investment to immediately study the establishment of an innovation fund. In addition, relevant agencies should continue to strengthen, expand, and enhance the effectiveness of the Vietnam Innovation Network.

The Prime Minister requested that following the inauguration of NIC's new facility, relevant agencies continue to research and propose tasks and solutions to promote the development of the innovation ecosystem nationwide, facilitating and promoting the activities of NIC as well as other innovation centers and innovation activities, programs, and projects in general .

Source: https://www.nguoiduatin.vn/thu-tuong-tham-va-lam-viec-tai-trung-tam-doi-moi-sang-tao-quoc-gia-a630800.html