"Over the past 50 years, Vietnam and India have consistently maintained a mutually beneficial friendship that has continued to grow. There is ample room for development between the two countries in digital transformation, software, semiconductors, and AI," said the deputy minister during a conversation with N.R. Narayana Murthy, co-founder of IT giant Infosys, on May 20.

The IT and digital technology sector in Vietnam is experiencing a significant surge, with a growth rate of 15-20 per cent over the past 10 years. In 2023, revenue from software, hardware, IT services, and digital content reached over $140 billion.

Vietnam's electronics sector has attracted many large overseas corporations, such as Samsung, Foxconn, and LG. Meanwhile, home-grown tech corporations like FPT, Viettel, and VNPT have shown they are capable of competing with the top foreign businesses.

In addition, there are more than 180 universities and colleges providing training in IT, electronics, and telecommunications majors, with 50,000 graduate engineers every year. This is a great incentive for Vietnam to promote the development of IT and digital technology.

To facilitate this goal, the Vietnamese government has issued a series of policies to promote a dynamic and creative ecosystem. Since 2001, Vietnam has developed eight concentrated IT parks housing more than 1,000 firms and more than 40,000 employees, with some policies aimed at building more of these parks.

In addition, the government has also issued many preferential policies for software development, high technology investment, and support for foreign-invested enterprises.

Under a national strategy on AI research, development, and application to 2030, approved by the government in 2021, Vietnam is aiming to make AI a spearhead technology in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The country is also striving to become a centre for innovation and development of AI solutions and applications in ASEAN and around the world by 2030.

The government will continue to issue many policies to support businesses in the IT sector. It is expected that the government will issue an initiative on semiconductor human resources development in June. Vietnam is also devising a strategy to develop its semiconductor industry to become an industry hub by 2030 with operations in design, packaging, and testing.