Description
This report is extremely worth reading, it is a 156-page English-Vietnamese bilingual report (Vietnamese starts on page 79) made & published by the Hanns Seidel Foundation in collaboration with the University of Social Sciences and Humanities – Hanoi National University. December 2021.
FOREWORD & INTRODUCTION TO THE REPORT
Digital transformation has existed almost everywhere in Vietnam. In cities, people will not be surprised to see digital transformation has crept into every corner of society. Even when eating at a roadside restaurant, people can pay without using cash. The motorbike taxi drivers are no longer beckoning pedestrians on the street, instead, they check the new ride information through the apps on their phones. E-commerce platforms have become an important part of the economy. Even in the countryside, people in remote villages have used digital platforms to advertise their homestays or tour guide services to potential customers. The global pandemic COVID-19 has accelerated Vietnam’s process of becoming a digital society.
In addition to the many benefits and opportunities that this development brings to millions of Vietnamese people, there has also been growing concern about Vietnam’s readiness level, in terms of institutions, policies, and techniques. capabilities, and resources for such a powerful transition. This Country Report addresses the potential benefits and
challenges of digitization in Vietnam from many different angles. Topics covered in the report cover hot issues related to digital transformation such as digital skills for the workforce, digital economy, data protection, e-government, and more. . These themes will shape institutional policy discussions in Vietnam
over the coming decades.
The Hanns Seidel Foundation has been working closely with many stakeholders to promote a comprehensive and sustainable digital transformation in Vietnam. Policy discussions related to the powerful digitalization process are a theme that runs through our projects. One of them is a cooperation project with the Office of the National Assembly to enhance the capacity of National Assembly deputies on legal aspects related to digital transformation. Besides, together with the Institute of Labor and Social Sciences (ILSSA), we focus on social security in the context of strong economic development. And recently, together with the Department of Justice, we started a series of seminars to discuss policies related to issues such as artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain-based smart contracts, and business. digital platform economy.
Digital transformation is not just about technical innovation. It is not just the process by which old communication technologies are being replaced by more modern ones: letters, newspapers, radio, television, desktop phones are being replaced by e-mail, government. electronics, messaging services, video telephony, online TV and shopping portals.
Digitization, the transition from analog to digital media is creating profound changes in the whole society with some aspects still quite elusive such as cultural, economic, social conditions society and politics within a country or its foreign relations. In short, digital transformation is making a profound historical mark with different influences in countries and regions around the world.
In this Vietnam Country Report issue, the editorial team once again tries to identify how global trends such as digital transformation are impacting Vietnam. As social scientists, the editorial team is less concerned with the digital technologies themselves than with their social impacts. Existing studies show that there are major impacts at the global level, particularly in countries like Vietnam. Here can be seen a comprehensive shift towards a new form of society, the digital society or the information society, where daily communication activities, entertainment and shopping, as well as business life can be seen. The economy and working environment are changing. There are options that were hard to think of before, such as in the fields of health, government operations, urban life, At the same time, new threats such as cybercrime appear. In addition, the education system must also adapt to new challenges – in which, an important keyword is digital literacy.
In any case, it is hard to deny the fact that the Vietnamese will have to adapt to major changes. The digital or information society is gradually replacing the industrial and service society, the previous dominant development models. This transformation has had a particularly strong impact in Vietnam: because there are indications that Vietnam can directly make the leap from a still-unfinished industrial and service society to a information association. The Covid-19 pandemic, the current global tragedy, may have contributed to this. The pandemic is accelerating the move towards digital society in many countries, as Klaus Schwab has pointed out. Therefore, it is not impossible that Vietnam will go a long way in the coming years.
The editorial team would like to thank all those who contributed to the making of this Report: first of all, the Hanns Seidel Foundation in Munich and Hanoi, represented by Mr. Michael Siegner, and all those who contributed For direct or indirect contributions, I would like to thank Professor, Dr. Pham Quang Minh – University of Social Sciences and Humanities, VNU, and Professor Detlef Briesen – Justus Liebig Gießen University for their time, efforts and enthusiasm. for this project. I would also like to thank all the authors who participated in the writing of the article. Finally, I would like to especially thank Dr. Nguyen Thi Thuy Trang – University of Social Sciences and Humanities, VNU, and Ms. Trinh Ngoc Mai – HSF Vietnam for their tireless efforts in coordinating this project.
The report will provide an early overview of an interesting social transition and some of its downsides.
ABOUT HANNS SEIDEL FOUNDATION
The Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF) is a political organization of the Federal Republic of Germany and was founded in Munich in 1967. Currently, HSF is implementing more than 80 projects in 60 countries around the world. HSF is committed to promoting democracy, peace and development. HSF’s activities are based on human ideals including individual freedom, development and autonomy as well as social responsibility and solidarity. HSF has implemented projects in Vietnam for the past three decades. Since the establishment of a representative office in Hanoi in 2011, HSF has continuously strengthened its cooperation with Vietnamese partners to promote economic, social and institutional development, with a particular focus on issues of social security, sustainable development and inclusive governance.
Source: Hanns Seidel Foundation Vietnam
