Under the digital infrastructure development strategy to 2025, with a view to 2030, Viet Nam sets the goal of building a modern, safe and sustainable digital infrastructure ecosystem. Initial achievements across online public services, telecommunications networks, data centres and digital platforms indicate that Viet Nam’s digital infrastructure is advancing rapidly, forming a crucial basis for enhancing national competitiveness in the data economy era.
Digital infrastructure gains momentum
With just a computer connected to the internet, it took Nguyen Van Tuan in Ha Noi only around 10 minutes to complete his son’s online passport application. No waiting, no queues and no need to travel to the office. About a week later, the passport will be delivered to his home.
“It’s very convenient and fast. For a fee of nearly 200,000 VND (7.6 USD), I just needed to take a photo of my son and fill in the required information to complete the application,” Tuan said.
This convenience comes from a smoothly operating digital infrastructure, shaping the way the entire system operates.
In the digital era, digital infrastructure is not merely a technical tool but a strategic factor determining national competitiveness. It comprises technical, data and application infrastructure.
According to experts, technical infrastructure must cover layers ranging from end-users to servers and data storage, while ensuring widespread, high-speed network connectivity.
Data infrastructure must be managed according to the principles of being “accurate, sufficient, clean, up-to-date, unified and shared”. Application infrastructure includes platforms and services deployed to serve socio-economic activities, from online public services to AI products, IoT and digital economy applications.
The core elements of a strong digital infrastructure include technology, security, institutional frameworks and human resources. Data governance mechanisms must be clear, avoiding overlap and obstructions; technological autonomy is essential to avoid dependence on foreign sources; safety and security are needed to protect data from attacks; and a workforce of core technology experts and a large number of users are required to effectively exploit the infrastructure.
“Viet Nam’s technical infrastructure is developing at a breakneck speed,” said Nguyen Truong Thanh, Technical Director of the Viet Nam Internet Centre.
He added that Viet Nam’s telecommunications and internet infrastructure has advanced strongly in recent years, with numerous marine and international fibre-optic cables, extensive 4G/5G coverage, and robust identity networks, domain name servers and IPv6 systems.
Viet Nam is currently among the top seven globally in IPv6 adoption, with 65% of users having already transitioned. This is an important stepping stone to ensuring the safety and sustainability of digital infrastructure development.
According to the 2024 report of the Viet Nam Cloud Computing and Data Centre Club (VNCDC), data centre capacity is growing rapidly from 45 MW in 2024 to an expected 525 MW in 2025 and an estimated 1,000 MW by 2030. Revenue from leasing data centre space, power, IP resources and bandwidth for server and network equipment hosting is projected to reach 1.4 billion USD by 2030.
Major telecommunications firms such as VNPT and Viettel are also making significant contributions to this process. VNPT is implementing internet, mobile and satellite connectivity projects to ensure comprehensive coverage across the mainland and islands, aiming to make Viet Nam a regional connectivity hub.
Meanwhile Viettel reports strong development in ICT infrastructure, with applications in agriculture, forestry, the economy, security and defence. Its data centre capacity is expected to reach 525 MW in 2025, and the company is also a leader in green data centre development.
Removing bottlenecks for safe and sustainable development
However, the “heart” of digital infrastructure – data – still faces bottlenecks in standardisation, interoperability, green energy and mastery of core technologies. Addressing these challenges is essential for Viet Nam to achieve its national digital transformation goals, build safe and sustainable digital infrastructure and gain a leadership position in the global data economy.
Professor Ho Tu Bao of the Viet Nam Institute for Advanced Studies in Mathematics pointed out that despite Viet Nam having many data centres and national data infrastructure policies, data systems are not yet built according to a unified architecture, limiting connectivity and sharing. There is also a lack of high-performance computing infrastructure, restricting big data exploitation and core technology development.
Nguyen Xuan Hoa, Global Market Manager at ABB, noted that foreign investors are not yet confident enough to invest significantly in data centres, mainly because the electricity infrastructure cannot support high loads and energy sources are not sufficiently green. Limitations in international connectivity and operational capacity are barriers for Viet Nam in attracting global technology corporations and meeting net zero targets.
To address this, Viet Nam needs to control cloud infrastructure and foundational technologies, while investing in multi-path international connections with two- to three-fold redundancy to enhance connectivity, protect data and strengthen sovereignty. Clean energy is also a prerequisite for building large-scale data centres.
Hoa cautioned that delays could cause investment opportunities to move to other countries. Mechanisms and policies also need improvement, including data legislation, data-sharing regulations, investment incentives for data centres and support for green energy. For example, Malaysia offers import tax exemptions on equipment to attract global data centres, a model Viet Nam could adopt to promote digital infrastructure development.
According to Nguyen Thi Ngoc Dung, Chief of Office of the National Data Association, data human resources are the key element, with data specialists and engineers forming the core workforce that operates digital infrastructure and masters core technologies.
The association has implemented specialised training programmes and international cooperation initiatives to build a capable data operations and core technology development workforce. Data personnel are considered a strategic resource, similar to the role of civil engineers during the development of traditional physical infrastructure.
Public-private partnerships are a strategic solution to connect stakeholders, share risks and utilise resources effectively. Pioneering digital technology enterprises will operate and deploy applications, while the State ensures the legal framework, cybersecurity and data sovereignty.
Digital application infrastructure must also maximise the use of big data, from public service platforms and digital identification to AI in healthcare, education, finance, tourism and smart cities. Effective data connectivity will help Viet Nam develop a high value-added digital economy and expand into international markets.
