Prime Minister Chinh, who is also chairman of the committee, highlighted key achievements last year, including the effective implementation of the National Digital Data Year and the National Population Database, improved online public services and digital infrastructure, with nearly 80 percent of the Vietnamese population now using the Internet. Furthermore, greater attention has been paid to cybersecurity and information safety. He also pointed out outstanding problems and weak points in the field and requested greater efforts in 2024. The PM asked the committee along with steering committees for the digital transformation of ministries, agencies, and localities to urgently issue digital transformation plans for 2024, which should focus on developing the digital economy across four pillars, namely the information technology industry, digitalization of economic sectors, digital management and digital data. He emphasized improving the effectiveness of online public services, particularly the 53 essential services, developing the national digital infrastructure, including the building of the National Data Center; upgrading the national axis to early commercialize 5G services in 2024, eliminating mobile signal dead zones nationwide, and striving for all villages and hamlets to be provided with fiber-optic cable connectivity. He requested the effective development of digital platforms, applications, and services, particularly artificial intelligence platforms, virtual assistants, the VNeID digital citizen application, digital payment applications, electronic invoices and contracts, and personal digital signatures. The Government leader also assigned tasks to ministries, sectors, and localities in digital transformation next year. Reports delivered at the meeting highlighted that the World Intellectual Property Organisation ranked Vietnam 46th in the 2023 Global Innovation Index, up two places compared to 2022. The national digital transformation index rose by 48 percent after three years from a value of 0.48 in 2020 to 0.71 in 2022, and is forecast to reach 0.75 in 2023. The digital economy is growing at an average of 20 percent a year, three times the GDP growth rate, and its share in the national economy is estimated at 16.5 percent this year. Vietnam was among the top 10 countries in terms of the number of new mobile application downloads for two consecutive years 2022 and 2023. The user base on digital platforms in the country experienced a 46 percent growth compared to 2022. By the end of this year, ministries and agencies reduced and simplified nearly 2,500 business regulations, streamlining 528 out of 1,086 administrative procedures related to citizens. The Ministry of Information and Communications proposed that digital transformation in 2024 should go in the direction of universalizing digital infrastructure, and creating digital applications to serve the development of the digital economy as a new driver for economic growth and productivity enhancement.
