Maximum support for data industry to turn Vietnam into digital nation: Party chief

The best conditions and maximum support will be provided to the data industry so that Vietnam can soon become a digital nation, with a digital society and a prosperous digital economy, said Party General Secretary To Lam.

The Party chief made the remark while addressing the first national congress of the National Data Association in Hanoi on Saturday. The event also saw the presence of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh.

Stressing the importance of data, To Lam pointed out that digital transformation, with data at its core, is fundamentally changing the way people live, work, and develop.

He noted that in its Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW, issued on December 22, 2024, the Politburo, the country's supreme decision-making body, identifies data as the core of digital transformation and a key driver of development.

The resolution also outlines pilot policies to establish an initial legal corridor for promoting data development and utilization.

He asked the National Data Association to promote its core role in building, developing, utilizing, and enriching national data, focusing on the four pillars of people, location, activities, and products.

He requested it to proactively apply, master, and advance towards self-reliance in core data technologies, particularly AI, big data, blockchain, and cloud computing technologies.

Emphasising the association's role in several key programs and initiatives, Lam stressed the need to develop a data market to support sustainable development, as well as establish a national data market and data exchange platforms to facilitate research, startups, innovation, and data-related products and services for sustainable socio-economic development.

He also highlighted the importance of building a national open AI platform to enable businesses to easily access and apply AI, noting that this should be Vietnam’s own AI.

Additionally, attention should also be paid to boosting data literacy among the public, while raising awareness, knowledge, and skills about data for people from all social strata, especially regarding the value and importance of personal data protection and compliance with legal regulations, he said.

According to the Party chief, data-based innovation challenge competitions should be organized soon to encourage the community to develop creative data-driven solutions and to create a platform that maximizes human potential in science and technology.

He also underlined the necessity to strengthen self-reliance in data technology, and prioritize, encourage and establish mechanisms to ensure that "Make in Vietnam" data technology products can compete fairly in the market, especially the international market.

The Party chief called for support for accelerating the development of advanced data infrastructure, including data centers invested in by both the State and private enterprises.

He also urged strengthening international cooperation, learning from global experience, attracting resources, and participating in global data initiatives, adding that it is necessary to build effective enforcement and monitoring mechanisms.

Government agencies, with the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of Science and Technology holding the leading role, together with other relevant ministries and sectors, must work out a more synchronized and stringent monitoring system by leveraging digital technology to ensure full and effective compliance with legal regulations, he said.

He stressed the need to ensure data security by developing data protection systems and data security services, establishing data security standards and forming a data security industry.

Mentioning certain shortcomings in data governance and exploitation, Lam said data governance is not only a policy issue but also a technological issue. Without technology, it is impossible to efficiently and safely collect, store, process, analyse, and share data.

The establishment of the National Data Association holds great significance, he stated, expressing his belief that it will take the lead in implementing Resolution 57 and other resolutions on science and technology, thus enabling Vietnam to become a digital nation with digital governance, digital economy, and digital society based on the country's "accurate, sufficient, clean, and living" data.

He requested a legal framework for data be completed to ensure that data can be collected, transferred, connected, shared, and maximized while maintaining data security, safety, and sovereignty.

Speaking at the event, General Luong Tam Quang, Minister of Public Security and President of the National Data Association for the 2025-2030 tenure, stated that the association will serve as a bridge connecting businesses, and foster a diverse and stable data ecosystem to support sustainable digital transformation across all sectors and lay a prerequisite for the country to enter a new digital era.

The National Data Association is tasked with connecting regulatory agencies, businesses, organizations, and individuals operating in the data industry. It aims to build a strong data ecosystem, helping promote the development of a digital economy and increasing the value of data in the national economy.