Vietnam is entering a strategic acceleration phase to achieve the goal of becoming a developing country with modern industry and high-middle income by 2030; and a developed and high-income country by 2045.
According to Mr. Bui Trung Nghia, Vice President of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), the Resolution of the 14th National Party Congress has identified science and technology, innovation and digital transformation as the main drivers of the new growth model.
Along with that, Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW of the Politburo on breakthroughs in science, technology, innovation and national digital transformation has set a target that by 2030, the digital economy will account for at least 30% of GDP, showing that science and technology, digital transformation are being placed in a direct relationship with productivity, growth rate and national competitiveness.
According to Mr. Nguyen Hoa Cuong - Deputy Director of the Institute for Policy and Strategy Research (Central Policy and Strategy Committee), for the digital economy to truly become a new growth engine, Vietnam needs to create a breakthrough in thinking and development institutions. In which, priority should be given to completing the legal framework, expanding the testing mechanism (sandbox) for new fields such as artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, open data and digital assets, and narrowing the gap between policy and practice.
According to Mr. Nguyen Hoa Cuong, besides perfecting institutions, it is necessary to synchronously develop digital infrastructure, digital data, improve the quality of human resources and have policies to support businesses, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, access technology, finance and markets to promote innovation.
The digital economy is emerging as a new driving force for economic growth.In the period 2020 - 2025, the proportion of the digital economy in GDP increased from 12.66% to more than 14%, equivalent to a scale of over 70 billion USD.Notably, the growth rate of this sector is always higher than the general GDP growth rate, reflecting the trend of shifting to a growth model based on technology, data and innovation.
However, experts also pointed out many bottlenecks hindering the development process, including institutions not keeping up with reality, digital infrastructure and data not synchronized, limited technology capacity of enterprises and lack of high-quality human resources.
According to Prof. Dr. To Trung Thanh - Deputy Director of the National Economics University, the digital economy is not just about applying technology, but a process of restructuring the growth model. Data, digital platforms and knowledge will gradually become core assets of businesses, creating new value and productivity for the economy.
From a business perspective, Mr. Nguyen Nhat Quang - Director of the Institute of Science and Technology (VINASA) said that the largest growth potential lies in bringing AI and digital technology into traditional economic sectors such as agriculture, industry, logistics and services, thereby improving productivity and added value instead of just focusing on developing technology products.
Experts believe that to realize the goal of the digital economy accounting for at least 30% of GDP by 2030 according to Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW, it is necessary to create institutional momentum, develop digital infrastructure, data infrastructure, digital human resources and form an innovative ecosystem linking the State, businesses and research institutions, contributing to improving productivity, competitiveness and promoting rapid and sustainable growth.
