Hanoi (VNA)♔– Vietnam's information and communication technology (ICT) companies arewell-positioned to make strong breakthroughs and reach out to the world in thenear future, on the back of widespread Internet access, abundant workforce andsupport from authorities at all levels.

Statistics from the InternationalTelecommunication Union (ITU) showed that about 49% of the world population, ornearly 4 billion people, have yet to be connected to the Internet. It is a chancefor Vietnamese ICT firms to reach globally. Pavel Poskakukhin, Co-Chairman ofthe EuropeanChamber of Commerce in Vietnam’s Digital Sector Committee, said thanks to young andtech-savvy population, Vietnamese ICT companies have a lot of opportunitiesin Europe, especially providing business solutions in e-commerce. Vietnam now ranks 12th in the world in terms of the number of Internet users with over 70 millionsubscribers. There are roughly 45,000 ICT firms with more than 1 millionemployees. The country also leads Southeast Asia with 25 software enterprises obtaining Capability MaturityModel Integration (CMMI) certification, surpassing Singapore andMalaysia. Lastyear, Viettel Military Industry and Telecoms Group (Viettel) earned 3 billion USD in revenuefrom foreign markets while FPT Group raked in 1 billion USD. Despite a large number, domestic ICT firms are mostly small and medium-sized enterprises. Viettel Chairmanand General Director Tao Duc Thang said when doing businessabroad, Vietnamese ICT companies could face risks related to the fluctuations offoreign exchange rate and lack of companions. He advised them tothoroughly learn about the political and socio-economic situation and laws of the hostcountry before making any investment. They should also stay close with localauthorities and build business policies that are closely linked to social welfare. Providing quality products at affordable costs is a suitable orientation duringthis technology popularising stage when both rich and poor countries arespeeding up digital transformation comprehensively and for more people, said Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Manh Hung. In the coming time,the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) together with technology associationswill support ICT firms by promoting economic diplomacy in digital technology,tapping global trade mechanisms to market digital technology trademarks,holding digital investment and trade promotion forums and conferences abroad,and advising the Government to sign digital partnership deals with countries, Hung said. He added that the MICalready set up an advisory team to help ICT firms go globally./.