Binh Duong reclaims world Top 7 Communities title

Binh Duong province in southern Vietnam has been glorified by Intelligent Community Forum (ICF) in its Top 7 Communities of 2022 list thanks to the Binh Duong Smart City project.

The New York-headquartered organization, a global network of 185 cities, metro regions and counties, and Binh Duong province will jointly present the 2022 Top 7 Intelligent Communities conference and announcement on Monday and Tuesday.

The “After the Pandemic: How Digital Innovation Drives Growth in Our Communities” conference on Tuesday will feature live and online events in Binh Duong, culminating in the announcement of the Top 7 Communities of 2022. ICF co-founder Louis Zacharilla will deliver the keynote address on the current state and evolution of the Intelligent Community.

The Top 7 Communities are chosen among the Smart 21 Communities of 2022 as finalists in the yearly Intelligent Community Awards. The New City of Binh Duong, also referred to as Binh Duong Smart City, was one of the Top 7 Communities of 2021 and is a Smart 21 Community again this year.

“Binh Duong Smart City is a great example of applying the ICF strategic framework in an emerging economy,” said co-founder Robert Bell.

“Despite the constraints of Covid, they have kept moving forward with the support of experts from ICF’s 2011 Intelligent Community of the Year. This conference will give the world a chance to catch up with an exciting model for development that aims to create inclusive prosperity and a sustainable path to growth.”

Binh Duong province, which borders Ho Chi Minh City and is part of Vietnam’s Southern Key Economic Zone, has embraced the concept of innovation-driven economic transformation and digitalization since 2016, when it started its ambitious Binh Duong Smart City program. Supported and inspired by the 2011 ICF Intelligent Community of the Year in the Netherlands, Binh Duong started an impressive journey of Intelligent socio-economic development.

Binh Duong Smart City, located in the province’s heart, is being developed by the Smart City Office, Vietnamese conglomerate Becamex IDC, the state agency overseeing the project, the academic and entrepreneurial sector and provincial administration. All have been working in concert to design a modern, environmentally friendly city.

The new city already includes Eastern International University, a leading academic institution, as well as six industrial parks and the region’s first mature business incubator at the university.

All government buildings in Binh Duong Smart City, as well as most public and private university buildings, colleges and high schools provide open wireless networks for their staff, students and visitors. Citizens living in more remote areas with limited access can make use of these public hubs too.

Binh Duong Smart City also has free public Wi-Fi on all buses of the Becamex Tokyu system, which provides transport in and around the province. Public spaces in the city have begun providing free Wi-Fi, including supermarkets, restaurants, coffee bars and parks. While it continues to expand its public Wi-Fi network, Binh Duong has also begun work on a glass fiber network to connect its industrial parks.

VSIP Binh Duong III is the industrial park where Danish giant toymaker Lego is investing more than $1 billion to build a smart factory on 44 hectares as its sixth manufacturing site globally and second in Asia.

Beginning in 2016, Binh Duong has organized and hosted Binh Duong Smart City Summit, demonstrating its economic and social value to the region on the world stage. The 2018 summit expanded and was co-organized by the Korean City of Daejeon and World Technopolis Association, as Korea is one of the major investors in the province.