HCMCity (VNA) – Research and development (R&D) is the cornerstone of innovationand the driving force of economic growth in the digital age, experts said atthe ASEAN – China smart industry conference in Ho Chi Minh City on July 25.

Speakingat the event, Director of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry – Ho ChiMinh City branch Vo Tan Thanh said the fourth industrial revolution affordsVietnam a chance to use new technologies to step up industrialisation andmodernisation.

In2018, Vietnam was one of the five countries globally posting the fastestinformation technology growth with over 72 percent of population using smartphones and more than 68 percent exploiting the Internet. The country’sinnovation was up 12 places from 2016.

TheVietnamese government pays attention to information and digital technology, industry,tourism, smart urban development, start-up ecological system, and workforcetraining.

Accordingto Thanh, Vietnam faces challenges regarding the shortage of high-quality humanresources, incomplete technical infrastructure and policies, and outdatedtechnology. If fully tapping opportunities from global integration and Industry4.0, Vietnam’s economic growth will be higher, generating 8 – 18 billion USDeach year.

SecretaryGeneral of ASEAN – China Centre Chen Dehai said China is strong in telecomtechnology, automation and artificial intelligence while ASEAN has huge demandfor new technologies used in manufacturing, artificial intelligence, big dataand smart urban development.

MatasukaFujida, Secretary General of ASEAN – Japan Centre urged ASEAN member states topromptly fine-tune mechanisms and policies for R&D.

InASEAN, Singapore and Malaysia spend most on R&D while Thailand and Malaysiarecord the highest number of workforce in the field.-VNA