Vietnam has in recent years focused on the development of hightechnology business incubators (HTBIs) and recorded initialachievements, the Vietnam Economic News reported on August 18.

TheHTBI is an organisation that links centres, research institutes,universities with groups and individuals in an effort to create abusiness start-up environment in a certain time to help newentrepreneurs overcome the initial difficulties and develop.


In other words, the HTBI provides services and facilities necessaryto support start-up business from idea shaping to development intosuccessful businesses. The HTBI concept is becoming increasingly popularin both developed and developing countries.

Dr. Nguyen Hai An,Director of Agricultural High Technology Business Incubation Centreunder the Ho Chi Minh City’s Management Board of Agricultural HighTechnology said prior to 2003, Vietnam did not have any HTBI. To date,it has recorded 11 HTBIs, including five in the north and six in thesouth, incubating more than 30 businesses.

According to theMinistry of Science and Technology’s National Agency for TechnologyEntrepreneurship and Commercialisation Development, the incubated hightechnology businesses have achieved some initial successes, with theannual sales ranging from 1 to 150 billion VND.

According to Dr.Mai Thanh Phong, Director of the High Technology Business IncubationCentre under the Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology, theGovernment should have incentives for high technology businessincubation establishments and incubated businesses such as long-termstable funding or preferential loans to carry out incubation, productionand product testing, as well as favourable conditions to attractinternational donors and non-governmental organisations. Meanwhile, hightechnology business incubation establishments should strengthen mutuallinkages.-VNA