Domestic ICT firms well-positioned to reach out to the world

Illustrative image (Photo: qdnd.vn)

Statistics from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) showed that about 49% of the world population, or nearly 4 billion people, have yet to be connected to the Internet. It is a chance for Vietnamese ICT firms to reach globally.

Pavel Poskakukhin, Co-Chairman of the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam’s Digital Sector Committee, said thanks to young and tech-savvy population, Vietnamese ICT companies have a lot of opportunities in Europe, especially providing business solutions in e-commerce.

Vietnam now ranks 12th in the world in terms of the number of Internet users with over 70 million subscribers. There are roughly 45,000 ICT firms with more than 1 million employees. The country also leads Southeast Asia with 25 software enterprises obtaining Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI) certification, surpassing Singapore and Malaysia.

Last year, Viettel Military Industry and Telecoms Group (Viettel) earned 3 billion USD in revenue from foreign markets while FPT Group raked in 1 billion USD.

Despite a large number, domestic ICT firms are mostly small and medium-sized enterprises.

Viettel Chairman and General Director Tao Duc Thang said when doing business abroad, Vietnamese ICT companies could face risks related to the fluctuations of foreign exchange rate and lack of companions.

He advised them to thoroughly learn about the political and socio-economic situation and laws of the host country before making any investment. They should also stay close with local authorities and build business policies that are closely linked to social welfare.

Providing quality products at affordable costs is a suitable orientation during this technology popularising stage when both rich and poor countries are speeding up digital transformation comprehensively and for more people, said Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Manh Hung.

In the coming time, the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) together with technology associations will support ICT firms by promoting economic diplomacy in digital technology, tapping global trade mechanisms to market digital technology trademarks, holding digital investment and trade promotion forums and conferences abroad, and advising the Government to sign digital partnership deals with countries, Hung said.

He added that the MIC already set up an advisory team to help ICT firms go globally.