What is the level of interest among member companies of your association in digital economy development in Vietnam?

George Choo, president of the Association of Telecommunications and Technology Industry in Singapore

Our members are interested in tapping into the digital economy development in Vietnam. We see various opportunities in the data centres and ICT requirements. Singapore already has about 120 data centres, and Vietnam only has about 30. Thus, there are many possibilities to expand further.

The recent signing of the Green-Digital Economic Partnership between Vietnam and Singapore has presented a significant opportunity for businesses of both countries.

In terms of digital economy cooperation, businesses can explore the digital infrastructure development, fintech innovation, e-commerce, digital services, and cybersecurity.

As for the green economy sector collaboration, areas such as renewable energy, energy efficiency, circular economy, carbon markets and green finance potentially could be considered favourably. Further, the synergistic effect of the digital and green economy would yield significant result in areas such as digitalisation of green initiatives, green fintech and smart cities. However, there are various government policies and rules that are in need to be further improved to facilitate that.

Vietnam is going to commercialise 5G. What opportunities for Singaporean businesses do you foresee?

5G commercialisation will bring new revenue sources for businesses. 5G will truly be the foundation to exploit the potential of industries.

Singapore companies would like to tap into this 5G journey of Vietnam. However, I received various feedback that sufficient spending on 5G in Vietnam for infrastructure is not forthcoming. Thus, I strongly suggest the government can work closely with the major telcos in Vietnam to see how this can be done.

With the understanding that the Vietnamese government is embarking on the digital economy and digitalisation journey, the 5G network is of utmost importance to enable this.

What are necessary factors for a nation to ensure successful 5G commercialisation, and what are some lessons from Singapore?

I believe that the public-private partnership methodology is viable. Government and public services that have the 5G policy in place can facilitate implementation and funding. Private entities such as telecoms companies can provide 5G services to businesses and individuals. That will also include the various tiers of ICT/telco companies and users, such as airports, seaports, banks, hospitals, hotels, and more.

There is a need for investment from them to adopt 5G applications and generating 5G requirements such as AI, smart offices, smart homes, advanced supply chain management requirement.

Consumers play a part as well with the use of 5G networks and e-commerce, e-banking, e-payments, and so on.

Vietnam and Singapore signed an upgraded connectivity framework agreement in 2023. What is the future trend of business cooperation among Vietnamese and Singaporean companies?

I see that it is ongoing with facilitating how Singapore can be a good example for Vietnam to look at the implementation of 5G Technology in Singapore. Singapore is rather matured in our e-government and e-services from various public services agencies. It attracted many multinational corporations setting up their Asia headquarters or regional headquarters (or some setting up their global headquarters) in Singapore.

For the digital economy, Singapore can share its expertise in building world-class digital infrastructure with Vietnam. This includes areas like data centres, 5G networks, and cybersecurity. To reap the benefits of the digital economy, Vietnam and Singapore can collaborate in fintech that may spur the development of innovative financial solutions for both countries, such as digital payments, insurtech, and blockchain applications.

On top of that, Singapore companies are not only interested in Vietnam, but also in other promising ASEAN countries. Our belief is that we see ASEAN as a bigger grouping that we can facilitate in putting all the ASEAN countries on the roadmap of this 5G journey. It will ultimately benefit all the countries by levering up all the telecommunications infrastructure in the region.