HCMCity (VNS/VNA) – Ho Chi Minh City plans to speed up digitaltransformation to achieve its goals of becoming a digital administration andsmart city this year.

Thecity’s leaders have pointed out three major areas of focus: governing the cityin the new situation (after the pandemic), buildingdatabases and linking all databases related to governance and reforminggovernance and finding new driving forces for future growth.

Accordingto the Department of Information and Communications, the city will implementcomprehensive technology solutions and exploit shared data for the preventionand control of COVID-19 and hastening economic recovery.

Thedatabases contain information about the public, enterprises and land.

Thedepartment’s director, Lam Dinh Thang, said the city would speed up digitaltransformation at governmental organisations andpromote e-government to improve the efficiency and quality of publicservices.

Atthe same time the city is also deploying applications to enhance interactionbetween the governmental agencies and residents, help enterprises speed updigital transformation, build a digital economy and society, and quicklyachieve digital transformation in priority areas such as healthcare andeducation.

Over900 State agencies, corporations and non-business establishments are alreadyusing some features of an integrated data-sharing platform.

Transportation,health, education and training, environment, urban planning, and securityagencies use a number of applications to  better serve thepublic and businesses.

Inaddition, HCM City will establish at least two technology innovation centresfrom now through 2025 to help businesses achieve digital transformation,according to the municipal People’s Committee.

Theywill strengthen supply chains, transfer technologies and innovations, carry outresearch into digital products, increase awareness of digital transformation,promote an innovation eco-system for start-ups, and help businesses developdigital products.

Theywill also tie up with prominent global partners for digital transformation andseek funding, evaluate the effectiveness of digital products and supportresearch and development of digital products and solutions.

Assessingthe city's digitisation efforts, Tran Thi Lan Huong, senior public sectorspecialist at the World Bank in Vietnam, said the city would need to carry outspecific transformations to boost the value of its digital economy since it hasgreat competitiveness and better resilience after the pandemic.

Itranks fifth out of 63 provinces and cities in the index for informationtechnology application and development.

Itcontributes a third of the country's GDP, and so would need to be apioneer in digital transformation, she added./.